WALES

Damian McBride

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales on what date he last met Mr. Damian McBride in the course of his official duties.

Peter Hain: I have not met Mr. McBride in either 2008 or 2009. Prior to that Mr. McBride was occasionally present at meetings I attended in the course of my ministerial duties in 2006-07.

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what percentage of employees in his Department  (a) are on a flexible working contract,  (b) are on a job share employment contract and  (c) work from home for more than four hours a week.

Peter Hain: The information is as follows:
	 (a) The Wales Office has 7 per cent. (four staff members) of its staff on a flexible working contract.
	 (b) None is on a job share employment contract.
	 (c) One member of staff (2 per cent.) works from home for more than four hours per week.

Departmental Manpower

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what percentage of employees in his Department are  (a) women and  (b) men; and what the average hourly pay is of (i) male and (ii) female employees.

Peter Hain: Women constitute 52 per cent. of the Wales Office work force. Collectively their average hourly rate of pay is £17.54. The average hourly rate of male staff is £19.24.

Departmental Responsibilities

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the executive functions of his Department are.

Peter Hain: Most of the executive functions which were the responsibility of the Secretary of State for Wales before 1 July 1999 have been transferred to the Welsh Assembly. The Secretary of State for Wales retains joint responsibility for approving a range of appointments, makes certain election orders for Wales and continues to have responsibility for royal matters, which includes holding the programme budget for lords lieutenant.
	The work of the Wales Office is described in detail in its annual reports to Parliament.

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMISSION

Government Departments: Accountancy

Nick Hurd: To ask the Chairman of the Public Accounts Commission pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 24 April 2009,  Official Report, column 977W, on Government Departments: accountancy, what the nature was of the direction in relation to property and notified regularity in relation to the Icelandic Water Trawlermen Scheme.

Alan Williams: This is not a matter for the Public Accounts Commission. The hon. Member may wish to request this information from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, which has assumed the responsibility for the scheme from the former Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform.

Government Departments: Accountancy

Nick Hurd: To ask the Chairman of the Public Accounts Commission pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 24 April 2009,  Official Report, column 977W, on Government Departments: accountancy, if he will place in the Library a copy of each letter of direction in relation to property and regularity sent to the Comptroller and Auditor General since 1997.

Alan Williams: This is not a matter for the Public Accounts Commission. The hon. Member may wish to request this information from the Departments concerned.

SCOTLAND

Departmental Electronic Equipment

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland pursuant to the answer of 24 November 2008,  Official Report, column 807W, on departmental electronic equipment, how much his Department has spent on  (a) flat screen televisions,  (b) DVD players and  (c) stereo equipment since November 2008.

Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office purchased one flat screen television since November 2008 at a cost of £341 as a replacement for a set which was no longer functioning.
	All expenditure has to be incurred in accordance with the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.

ELECTORAL COMMISSION COMMITTEE

Political Parties: Finance

Francis Maude: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what plans the Electoral Commission has to produce guidance on the new provisions in the Political Parties and Elections Bill on non-resident donors.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it intends to produce guidance for those it regulates about the new provisions on non-resident donors, and the other changes to the regulatory regime arising from the Bill, in due course.
	The timing of publication of each piece of guidance will depend on the timing of the commencement of the relevant provisions in the Bill.

Political Parties: Finance

Francis Maude: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what discussions the Electoral Commission has had with HM Revenue and Customs on the enforceability and feasibility of the new provisions in the Political Parties and Elections Bill on non-resident donors.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission informs me that it has had no such discussions with HM Revenue and Customs.

WOMEN AND EQUALITY

Commission for Equality and Human Rights

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what expenditure the Commission for Equality and Human Rights incurred on legal action against  (a) private and  (b) public sector organisations in each of the last two years.

Michael Jabez Foster: The Equality and Human Rights Commission has recorded a spend of £230,868 in 2007-08 and £320,819 in 2008-09 (both including VAT) on external legal costs associated with strategic enforcement litigation carried out in relation to private and public sector organisations.
	It is not possible to provide a breakdown of expenditure in terms of public and private sector, as the EHRC does not record expenditure in this way.

Departmental Internet

Tom Watson: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality pursuant to the answer of 9 July 2009,  Official Report, column 984W, on departmental internet, what the  (a) names and  (b) versions are of the web browsers used on the (i) desktop machines and (ii) laptop computers used by the (A) Director General, (B) chief information officer, (C) head of communications and (D) head of finance of the Government Equalities Office.

Michael Jabez Foster: The Government Equalities Office uses Microsoft Internet Explorer as its web browser application. The current version in use is v 6.0.3790.1830. This version is used by all staff on both desktop and laptop computers.

Females: Refuge

Robert Key: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many women's refuges there are in England; and how many are staffed at all times.

Michael Jabez Foster: The Government do not collect information centrally on the number of women's refuges in England or the provision of staff within refuges.
	The provision of services to victims of domestic violence is a local issue; local decision makers are best placed to assess local needs. The majority of services are delivered through local providers who are supported and funded by local bodies, such as local councils and health organisations.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Cycling

Gwyn Prosser: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission with reference to the answer of 5 November 2008,  Official Report, column 475W, on cycling, when he expects to announce the decision on the implementation of a cycle to work scheme for staff of the House; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Harvey: The House Service has investigated the possible implementation of a cycle to work scheme, taking into account the experiences of other public sector organisations which had implemented a scheme. The conclusion was that the House Service should not implement a scheme. This was based on the low take-up rates found elsewhere, and the unrecoverable overhead costs. The House Service will continue to encourage cycling through the bicycle loan scheme and facilities for cyclists, including bicycle racks and showers.

Yorkshire and the Humber Select Committee

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission 
	(1)  which witnesses travelled to attend the planned meeting of the Yorkshire and the Humber Regional Select Committee in Leeds; what expenses relating to such travel have been met by the House; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what expenditure on  (a) accommodation,  (b) travel by Committee members and staff and  (c) other expenses the House has incurred in respect of the meeting of the Yorkshire and Humber Regional Select Committee which was expected to take place in Leeds but which did not do so because the Committee was inquorate.

Nick Harvey: The witnesses who travelled to Leeds for this meeting were Richard Wightman, president of Yorkshire and Humber Chambers of Commerce; David Wilson, Engineering Employers Federation; Tony Cherry, national vice-chairman, Federation of Small Businesses; and Andrew Palmer, regional director, Confederation of British Industry. No claims for travel expenses have been received from the prospective witnesses. The costs for staff accommodation were £317.95, and for staff travel were £1,115, in both cases for five staff. Other costs, including the hire charge for the room, were £137.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

BAE Systems

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Solicitor-General what investigations the Serious Fraud Office has conducted into BAE Systems since January 2004.

Vera Baird: There have been four investigations conducted by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) into BAE Systems plc. All four investigations began on 14 July 2004. The SFO decided to discontinue the investigation into the affairs of BAE Systems plc.-as far as they relate to the Al Yamamah defence contract with the Government of Saudi Arabia-on 14 December 2006. The other three investigations continue.

Complaints

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what the policy and procedures are of  (a) the Treasury Solicitor and  (b) the Law Officers for handling complaints made against their legal staff.

Vera Baird: Complaints received from members of the public about legal staff in the Law Officers' Departments are dealt with according to each Department's individual procedure.
	The underlying principle is that there is a tiered system of oversight starting at the local level, progressing, if the complainant remains dissatisfied, to a nominated senior lawyer in that Department. After a Department's own procedure has been concluded the complainant can write to the Attorney General's Office for it to consider whether the complaint was handled fairly, sensitively and in confidence, and whether each concern raised has been appropriately dealt with.

Corruption

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Solicitor-General how many requests from foreign jurisdictions relating to allegations of overseas corruption offences the mutual legal assistance unit of the Serious Fraud Office has received in the last 10 years; from which jurisdictions such requests have come; and how many such requests have resulted in domestic investigations since 2001.

Vera Baird: It would incur disproportionate cost to identify the number of requests received from foreign jurisdictions by the Serious Fraud Office's (SFO) mutual legal assistance Unit over the last 10 years.
	The SFO does not disclose details of assistance provided to overseas investigations without consent from the referring jurisdiction or unless the referring jurisdiction has made public disclosures.
	Since 2001, only two requests for assistance involving corruption from overseas jurisdictions have resulted in domestic investigations being opened by the SFO. One of these investigations is ongoing, while the other was discontinued in June last year.

Corruption

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Solicitor-General what criteria the Serious Fraud Office applies in deciding whether to investigate an allegation of overseas bribery.

Vera Baird: The key criterion used by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) when deciding whether to accept a case is that the suspected fraud or corruption appears to be so serious or complex that its investigation should be carried out by those responsible for its prosecution.
	Other factors taken into consideration when deciding whether to accept a case are as follows:
	Whether the value of the alleged fraud exceeds £1 million;
	If the case has a significant international dimension;
	If the case is likely to be of widespread public concern;
	If the case requires highly specialised knowledge-for example, of financial markets;
	If there is a need to use the SFO's special powers, such as section 2 of the Criminal Justice Act.
	The SFO does not have separate criteria that apply to allegations of overseas bribery. Allegations of this nature would have to meet the above criteria for the SFO to commence an investigation.
	The SFO could not-and does not-take on every referred case of suspected fraud or corruption. It must focus its resources on the major, most complicated and serious instances of fraud or corruption. Cases which do not meet the SFO's case acceptance criteria may be referred to other authorities for investigation and prosecution.

Corruption

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Solicitor-General to which countries the Serious Fraud Office has provided assistance in corruption cases since 2001; and if she will make a statement.

Vera Baird: The Serious Fraud Office's (SFO) mutual legal assistance unit has provided assistance to 26 countries since 2001.
	There has been a notable increase in the number of countries that the SFO has assisted since the former Solicitor-General (Mr. O'Brien) answered a similar question to this on 11 January 2007,  Official Report, column 644W.
	The SFO does not disclose details of assistance provided to overseas investigations without consent from the referring jurisdiction or unless the referring jurisdiction has made public disclosures.

Corruption

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Solicitor-General what cases of alleged overseas bribery and corruption which the Serious Fraud Office has accepted for investigation are under investigation; which countries are concerned; and if she will make a statement.

Vera Baird: The Serious Fraud Office is currently investigating a number of significant cases where there are allegations of overseas bribery and corruption, as well as fraud.
	It is not possible for operational reasons to give specific details of each of these cases, but two examples of current investigations include an investigation into Kellog Brown and Root in connection with Nigeria and a number of other countries, and an investigation into reinsurance involving the National Insurance Institute in Costa Rica.
	A number of other cases are also currently being considered for investigation in the vetting process.

Corruption

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Solicitor-General how many cases had been recorded on the register of referrals for overseas corruption on the latest date for which figures are available; and how many cases recorded on the register were  (a) investigated,  (b) researched to establish whether an investigation was merited,  (c) closed after investigation and  (d) passed to another agency in each year since 2001.

Vera Baird: The register of referrals for overseas corruption was maintained by the National Criminal Intelligence Service from 14 February 2002 after sections 108 and 109 of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act (2001) came into effect. On 1 August 2005, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) took over responsibility for maintaining the register.
	The SFO had 202 cases recorded on the register of referrals for overseas corruption as of 30 June 2009-the latest date for which figures are available.
	In respect of parts  (a),  (b) and  (c) of the right hon. Member's question, the figures are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Calendar year  Cases recorded  (a) Investigated (following research)  (b) Researched  (c) Closed after investigation 
			 2002(1) 6 0 4 0 
			 2003 7 4 1 2 
			 2004 34 6 18 1 
			 2005 23 6 12 3 
			 2006 24 4 12 3 
			 2007 36 11 17 3 
			 2008 44 16 17 8 
			 2009(2) 28 0 23 0 
			 Total 202 47 104 20 
			 (1) From 14 February 2002. (2) To 30 June 2009. 
		
	
	In respect of part  (d) of the question, approximately 30 cases have been passed on to other agencies since the register was opened. A year-by-year breakdown cannot be provided as records are not kept in this format.

Corruption: Prosecution

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Solicitor-General what meetings  (a) she and  (b) her officials have had with (i) representatives of business organisations, (ii) representatives of individual companies and (iii) other persons on the prosecution of corruption offences in the last 12 months; and what representations have been received on the matter in that period.

Vera Baird: Officials from the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) frequently meet with representatives of business organisations and individual companies, professional advisers and other interested parties such as non-Government organisations. These meetings often involve discussions about the prosecution of corruption offences as well as other counter-fraud matters. The SFO encourages an open dialogue with a wide range of stakeholders on corruption and continues to receive representations from these on how it can improve its approach to this important issue.

Crown Prosecution Service: Expert Evidence

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Solicitor-General what progress has been made by the Crown Prosecution Service in its evaluation of appropriate standards for expert witnesses in criminal trials.

Vera Baird: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has welcomed and responded to the recent consultation by the Law Commission on the Admissibility of Expert Evidence in Criminal Proceedings. It has also been assisting the independent Forensic Science Regulator in producing a set of Quality Standards for Forensic Experts which have been the subject of consultation. The CPS has established an internal advisory Expert Evidence Assurance Panel (EEAP) to support the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in this area; and it continues to contribute to key criminal justice agencies' work in this field.

Damian McBride

Francis Maude: To ask the Solicitor-General on what date  (a) she and  (b) the Attorney General last met Mr. Damian McBride in the course of their official duties.

Vera Baird: Neither myself nor the Attorney-General met with Mr. Damien McBride in the course of official duties.

Domestic Violence: North West

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Solicitor-General how many  (a) arrests,  (b) prosecutions and  (c) convictions of (i) men and (ii) women for acts of domestic violence there were in (A) Stockport, (B) Greater Manchester and  (c) the North West in each of the last 10 years.

Vera Baird: The following tables show the number of defendants prosecuted by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in Stockport, Greater Manchester, and the North West for offences of domestic violence in each of the five years (these are the years for which complete records are available). CPS data are confined to defendant case outcomes in a set of proceedings. Information on arrests has been provided by the Home Office in the following tables. This information is captured on a different basis, and cannot easily be associated with CPS data.
	Outcomes are divided into convictions, including guilty pleas as well as convictions after trial, and unsuccessful outcomes, comprising all other outcomes. Figures are shown separately for male and for female defendants. The North West comprises CPS Cumbria and CPS Lancashire.
	The tables also show comparable data for England and Wales as a whole for the same period.
	
		
			  Domestic violence outcomes by gender of defendant 
			   Male 
			   Convictions  Unsuccessful outcomes  Total 
			   Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			  Stockport   
			 2004-05 76 63.3 44 36.7 120 94.5 
			 2005-06 79 57.7 58 42.3 137 94.5 
			 2006-07 111 61.3 70 38.7 181 96.8 
			 2007-08 194 73.2 71 26.8 265 92.7 
			 2008-09 220 82.1 48 17.9 268 94.4 
			
			  Greater Manchester   
			 2004-05 895 57.6 660 42.4 1,555 96.3 
			 2005-06 1,548 67.7 740 32.3 2,288 96.1 
			 2006-07 2,149 68.1 1,007 31.9 3,156 95.0 
			 2007-08 2,822 72.3 1,079 27.7 3,901 94.5 
			 2008-09 2,855 75.3 938 24.7 3,793 94.3 
			
			  North West   
			 2004-05 969 61.9 596 38.1 1,565 96.1 
			 2005-06 1,566 67.6 750 32.4 2,316 94.9 
			 2006-07 1,944 68.1 912 31.9 2,856 94.9 
			 2007-08 2,754 76.0 870 24.0 3,624 92.4 
			 2008-09 3,607 78.3 1,002 21.7 4,609 90.7 
			
			  England  and  Wales   
			 2004-05 18,659 55.3 15,094 44.7 33,753 95.5 
			 2005-06 28,736 59.9 19,209 40.1 47,945 94.8 
			 2006-07 35,647 65.3 18,913 34.7 54,560 94.8 
			 2007-08 41,430 69.0 18,607 31.0 60,037 94.1 
			 2008-09 45,484 72.4 17,321 27.6 62,805 93.6 
		
	
	
		
			   Female 
			   Convictions  Unsuccessful outcomes  Total 
			   Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			  Stockport   
			 2004-05 2 28.6 5 71.4 7 5.5 
			 2005-06 7 87.5 1 12.5 8 5.5 
			 2006-07 3 50.0 3 50.0 6 3.2 
			 2007-08 13 61.9 8 38.1 21 7.3 
			 2008-09 8 50.0 8 50.0 16 5.6 
			
			  Greater Manchester   
			 2004-05 23 38.3 37 61.7 60 3.7 
			 2005-06 65 70.7 27 29.3 92 3.9 
			 2006-07 114 69.1 51 30.9 165 5.0 
			 2007-08 153 67.7 73 32.3 226 5.5 
			 2008-09 166 72.5 63 27.5 229 5.7 
			
			  North West   
			 2004-05 45 70.3 19 29.7 64 3.9 
			 2005-06 80 64.5 44 35.5 124 5.1 
			 2006-07 107 70.4 45 29.6 152 5.1 
			 2007-08 223 75.1 74 24.9 297 7.6 
			 2008-09 366 77.7 105 22.3 471 9.3 
			  England  and  Wales   
			 2004-05 806 51.2 769 48.8 1,575 4.5 
			 2005-06 1,474 56.6 1,132 43.4 2,606 5.2 
			 2006-07 1,850 62.3 1,120 37.7 2,970 5.2 
			 2007-08 2,540 67.4 1,230 32.6 3,770 5.9 
			 2008-09 2,968 69.6 1,298 30.4 4,266 6.4 
		
	
	
		
			   Total 
			   Convictions  Unsuccessful outcomes  
			   Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Total outcomes 
			  Stockport  
			 2004-05 78 61.4 49 38.6 127 
			 2005-06 86 59.3 59 40.7 145 
			 2006-07 114 61.0 73 39.0 187 
			 2007-08 207 72.4 79 27.6 286 
			 2008-09 228 80.3 56 19.7 284 
			   
			  Greater Manchester  
			 2004-05 918 56.8 697 43.2 1,615 
			 2005-06 1,613 67.8 767 32.2 2,380 
			 2006-07 2,263 68.1 1,058 31.9 3,321 
			 2007-08 2,975 72.1 1,152 27.9 4,127 
			 2008-09 3,021 75.1 1,001 24.9 4,022 
			   
			  North West  
			 2004-05 1,014 62.2 615 37.8 1,629 
			 2005-06 1,646 67.5 794 32.5 2,440 
			 2006-07 2,051 68.2 957 31.8 3,008 
			 2007-08 2,977 75.9 944 24.1 3,921 
			 2008-09 3,973 78.2 1,107 21.8 5,080 
			   
			  England  and  Wales  
			 2004-05 19,465 55.1 15,863 44.9 35,328 
			 2005-06 30,210 59.8 20,341 40.2 50,551 
			 2006-07 37,497 65.2 20,033 34.8 57,530 
			 2007-08 43,970 68.9 19,837 31.1 63,807 
			 2008-09 48,452 72.2 18,619 27.8 67,071 
		
	
	
		
			   2004-05  2005-06 
			   No. of DV arrests  No. of DV incidents  DV incident arrest rate (%)  No. of DV arrests  No. of DV incidents  DV incident arrest rate (%) 
			 Avon and Somerset 2,422 14,537 16.7 3,421 14,714 23.2 
			 Bedfordshire 2,031 7,486 27.1 2,093 7,800 26.8 
			 Cambridgeshire - - - 1,118 7,081 15.8 
			 Cheshire 1,087 4,115 26.4 2,185 6,709 32.6 
			 City of London 23 102 22.5 39 83 47.0 
			 Cleveland 2,282 9,689 23.6 3,265 12,493 26.1 
			 Cumbria 1,438 5,568 25.8 1,057 3,809 27.8 
			 Derbyshire - - - - - - 
			 Devon and Cornwall 5,106 20,123 25.4 5,086 21,417 23.7 
			 Dorset 1,147 4,016 28.6 1,688 4,962 34.0 
			 Durham 1,853 8,904 20.8 2,045 8,218 24.9 
			 Dyfed-Powys 1,180 3,890 30.3 1,438 3,895 36.9 
			 Essex 2,703 14,399 18.8 2,901 10,785 26.9 
			 Gloucestershire - - - 1,652 6,693 24.7 
			 Greater Manchester 6,150 56,778 10.8 6,965 60,977 11.4 
			 Gwent 2,727 4,329 63.0 2,371 4,787 49.5 
			 Hampshire 3,140 18,787 16.7 - - - 
			 Hertfordshire 2,423 12,783 19.0 2,456 10,514 23.4 
			 Humberside 1,150 7,519 15.3 3,138 12,500 25.1 
			 Kent 4,198 18,321 22.9 4,572 19,464 23.5 
			 Lancashire 6,011 22,514 26.7 7,390 22,020 33.6 
			 Leicestershire 301 3,375 8.9 2,801 12,935 21.7 
			 Lincolnshire 1,257 7,117 17.7 1,062 5,965 17.8 
			 Merseyside 2,936 17,605 16.7 5,075 23,292 21.8 
			 Metropolitan Police 14,738 60,838 24.2 21,268 59,905 35.5 
			 Norfolk 1,407 5,813 24.2 2,250 8,008 28.1 
			 North Wales 198 1,551 12.8 1,062 4,819 22.0 
			 North Yorkshire 1,497 4,660 32.1 2,081 4,276 48.7 
			 Northamptonshire 433 7,012 6.2 1,851 2,818 65.7 
			 Northumbria 5,993 22,879 26.2 6,598 22,871 28.8 
			 Nottinghamshire 840 4,149 20.2 2,037 15,279 13.3 
			 South Wales 3,818 14,797 25.8 4,971 16,791 29.6 
			 South Yorkshire 2,404 5,225 46.0 2,463 6,276 39.2 
			 Staffordshire 5,230 6,714 77.9 5,793 16,234 35.7 
			 Suffolk 997 5,515 18.1 1,168 5,532 21.1 
			 Surrey 1,776 11,563 15.4 2,489 12,498 19.9 
			 Sussex 4,700 15,604 30.1 4,137 14,710 28.1 
			 Thames Valley 3,164 14,884 21.3 6,236 18,124 34.4 
			 Warwickshire - - - 165 908 18.2 
			 West Mercia 2555 8486 30.1 3099 11684 26.5 
			 West Midlands 8,388 33,667 24.9 11,789 38,333 30.8 
			 West Yorkshire 11,045 34,914 31.6 15,949 34,857 45.8 
			 Wiltshire 1,318 9,067 14.5 1,722 6,710 25.7 
			
			 National - - - - - - 
		
	
	
		
			   2006-07  2007-08 
			   No. of DV arrests  No. of DV incidents  DV incident arrest rate (%)  No. of DV arrests  No. of DV incidents  DV incident arrest rate (%) 
			 Avon and Somerset 4,569 15,532 29.4 3,313 10,719 30.9 
			 Bedfordshire 1,608 7,341 21.9 1,333 7,603 17.5 
			 Cambridgeshire 1,283 7,501 17.1 1,723 8,908 19.3 
			 Cheshire 2,768 5,161 53.6 2,635 4,865 54.2 
			 City of London 54 96 56.3 55 116 47.4 
			 Cleveland 1,606 6,083 26.4 3,609 10,879 33.2 
			 Cumbria 1,114 4,372 25.5 1,577 4,515 34.9 
			 Derbyshire 3,195 11,818 27.0 4,458 16,425 27.1 
			 Devon and Cornwall 3,715 22,828 16.3 4,395 23,789 18.5 
			 Dorset 2,096 5,458 38.4 2,148 5,867 36.6 
			 Durham 2,016 8,163 24.7 2,123 8,520 24.9 
			 Dyfed-Powys 1,830 3,871 47.3 1,492 2,836 52.6 
			 Essex 4,207 15,225 27.6 5,606 17,826 31.4 
			 Gloucestershire 2,062 8,237 25.0 2,287 7,352 31.1 
			 Greater Manchester 8,269 64,727 12.8 8,924 64,156 13.9 
			 Gwent 1,876 6,757 27.8 1,428 7,696 18.6 
			 Hampshire 8,177 22,682 36.1 7,321 22,912 32.0 
			 Hertfordshire 2,965 10,926 27.1 3,223 11,280 28.6 
			 Humberside 3,396 12,752 26.6 3,159 13,531 23.3 
			 Kent 6,148 19,087 32.2 6,696 20,141 33.2 
			 Lancashire 8,333 22,217 37.5 8,365 23,030 36.3 
			 Leicestershire 2,773 9,918 28.0 2,202 9,033 24.4 
			 Lincolnshire 1,304 4,912 26.5 2,129 5,712 37.3 
			 Merseyside 5,583 25,568 21.8 6,320 29,033 21.8 
			 Metropolitan Police 31,582 69,438 45.5 35,355 84,026 42.1 
			 Norfolk 2,104 7,893 26.7 1,655 6,241 26.5 
			 North Wales 3,580 10,188 35.1 3,461 9,860 35.1 
			 North Yorkshire 2,552 5,986 42.6 1,795 5,466 32.8 
			 Northamptonshire 1,792 7,850 22.8 1,809 9,586 18.9 
			 Northumbria 7,441 24,277 30.7 8,758 25,788 34.0 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,906 17,534 10.9 1,756 19,166 9.2 
			 South Wales 4,814 15,421 31.2 - - - 
			 South Yorkshire 5,781 17,825 32.4 6,377 16,026 39.8 
			 Staffordshire 5,486 18,659 29.4 3,074 20,118 15.3 
			 Suffolk 1,564 4,314 36.3 1,506 4,964 30.3 
			 Surrey 3,068 11,742 26.1 2,843 10,803 26.3 
			 Sussex 6,327 14,374 44.0 3,784 15,877 23.8 
			 Thames Valley 7,794 16,391 47.6 9,053 26,383 34.3 
			 Warwickshire 1,580 6,932 22.8 2,054 7,305 28.1 
			 West Mercia 3,570 12,799 27.9 3,538 13,241 26.7 
			 West Midlands 15,216 40,233 37.8 13,732 37,897 36.2 
			 West Yorkshire 18,378 34,481 53.3 16,729 30,348 55.1 
			 Wiltshire 2,083 6,600 31.6 2,430 6,433 37.8 
			
			 National - - - 206,230 686,272 30.1

Government Legal Service: Complaints

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what procedures there are within the Government Legal Service for dealing with complaints about non-compliance with the Lexcel standard.

Vera Baird: The procedure in respect of complaints about non-compliance with Lexcel by Treasury Solicitor's Department is that, like any complaint, they should be directed to the Head of Litigation at the Treasury Solicitor's Department or to the Treasury Solicitor for consideration.
	Any complaints in respect of other Departments will be dealt with in accordance with the rules of the relevant Department.

Government Legal Service: Manpower

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what the order of precedence and seniority is of the lawyers within the Government Legal Service; and what procedures are used to reconcile differences of opinion between lawyers of different ranks within the Service.

Vera Baird: The Government Legal Service (GLS) is the organisational name for a group embracing the legal divisions in around 30 Departments, agencies and other organisations across Government. The GLS does not employ staff. Lawyers are employed by Departments, agencies and other organisations across Government. Membership of the GLS is by accreditation of the department or other body to which the lawyer belongs. The organisational management structure and lines of accountability apply to Government lawyers in the same way as they apply to all other civil servants working in the same organisation.
	The inter-relationships between Government lawyers' obligations as civil servants and as members of the legal profession are set out in the Guidance Note for Government Lawyers, including the right, and at times the duty, to consult the Law Officers on professional questions.

Government Legal Service: Standards

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what requirements there are on members of the Government Legal Service who are on the roll of solicitors to report to the Solicitors Regulation Authority the conduct of other members of the Government Legal Service who may not have complied with the professional standards of solicitors.

Vera Baird: Members of the Government Legal Service (GLS) who are enrolled solicitors are under the same requirement as all other enrolled solicitors with regard to the reporting of conduct of solicitors which may have breached professional, standards, whether those solicitors are in the GLS, in in-house practice elsewhere or in private practice.
	That requirement derives from the Law Society's Code of Conduct which requires the reporting of serious misconduct and serious financial difficulty.

Government Legal Service: Standards

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what steps have been taken to promote legal professionalism within the Government Legal Service.

Vera Baird: The members of the Government Legal Service (GLS) take their obligation to promote the professionalism of their legal staff very seriously. All Government lawyers are bound by the codes of conduct applicable to their branch of the profession, including the duty to undertake Continuing Professional Development. They are supported in this through access to a tailored programme of Professional Training for Government Lawyers-designed by the GLS and delivered through the National School of Government.

Legal Costs

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Solicitor-General in how many cases costs have been awarded against the Crown Prosecution Service in each of the last three years.

Vera Baird: The following table provides a summary of the total number of payments made and the value of costs awarded against the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in the last three financial years. The CPS holds no central record of the number of cases in respect of which costs were awarded against the Service. The information is held on individual case files and could only be retrieved by examining every relevant file in each CPS office.
	
		
			   Value  (£000)  Number 
			 2006-07 403 262 
			 2007-08 752 333 
			 2008-09 653 485 
		
	
	Every effort has been made to ensure that the information is comprehensive and correct, but a full reconciliation against the original transactions has not been performed as this would incur disproportionate costs.

Legal Profession

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what the  (a) employment status and  (b) requirement to pay national insurance contributions is of counsel whom the Government restrict from undertaking work for others.

Vera Baird: The two First Treasury Counsel (who undertake exclusively civil litigation in which the Crown has an interest) are self-employed barristers. Their national insurance position is a matter between them and Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs.

Negligence: Legal Costs

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what provision has been made by the Treasury Solicitor to meet any professional negligence claims and complaints in each of the last three years; and what provision has been made for the next three years.

Vera Baird: The Treasury Solicitor's Department has made no provision to meet any professional negligence claims in the last three years and has no plans to make any such provision.
	The Treasury Solicitor's Department, in common with other Departments, has a formal procedure for external complaints, details of which are available on its website.

Offences Against the Person Act 1861

Jon Trickett: To ask the Solicitor-General how many defendants were sentenced under the provisions of section 20 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 after a plea bargain by the  (a) Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) nationally and  (b) West Yorkshire CPS in 2007-08.

Vera Baird: Plea bargaining is not a term recognised by the criminal law of England and Wales. The decision of a prosecutor to accept guilty pleas to offences other than those charged, or on a different factual basis, is governed by section 10 of the Code for Crown Prosecutors and the Attorney-General's guidelines on the acceptance of pleas and the Prosecutor's role in the sentencing exercise.
	Crown Prosecution Service records include a count of the number of offences in which a prosecution commenced under s20 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861, and these figures are as follows. However, CPS records include no particulars of the outcome of proceedings at this level of detail, and to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Offences reaching a first hearing in magistrates courts 
			   S18 Offences  A gainst  t he Person Act 1861 
			   CPS England and Wales  CPS West Yorkshire 
			 2005-2006 7,158 320 
			 2006-2007 6,617 228 
			 2007-2008 6,770 257 
			 2008-2009 6,672 329 
		
	
	
		
			  S20 Offences Against the Person Act 1861 
			   CPS England and Wales  CPS West Yorkshire 
			 2005-2006 5,642 249 
			 2006-2007 5,457 199 
			 2007-2008 5,321 190 
			 2008-2009 5,072 233

Offences Against the Person Act 1861

Jon Trickett: To ask the Solicitor-General how many defendants over the age of 21 years were charged with an offence of grievous bodily harm under section 18 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 in 2007-08; and how many such defendants subsequently agreed to plead guilty to, and were convicted of, an offence under section 20 of that Act after discussions with the prosecuting authorities.

Vera Baird: The Crown Prosecution Service's system for managing its case data includes a count of the number of offences for which a prosecution is commenced under section 18 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861, and these figures are as follows. However, the case management system does not record particulars of subsequent amendments to the charges brought. While the CPS records both the outcome of proceedings and the age of defendants, this information is captured at defendant level, not at specific charge level.
	
		
			  Offences against the Person Act 1861 (18) 
			   Number 
			 2005-06 7,158 
			 2006-07 6,617 
			 2007-08 6,770 
			 2008-09 6,672

Prosecutions

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Solicitor-General how many prosecutions brought by the Crown Prosecution Service have not resulted in a conviction in each of the last three years.

Vera Baird: The following table shows, for each of the last three years, the number of defendants prosecuted by the CPS whose case was completed in magistrates courts and in the Crown court. These are divided into convictions, inclusive of guilty pleas as well as cases convicted after trial, and unsuccessful outcomes, representing all outcomes other than a conviction.
	
		
			   Magistrates court  Crown court  All courts 
			   Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			  2006 to 2007   
			 Conviction outcomes 831,901 84.2 69,118 77.3 901,019 83.6 
			 Unsuccessful outcomes 156,080 15.8 20,290 22.7 176,370 16.4 
			 Total completed outcomes 987,981  89,408  1,077,389  
			
			  2007 to 2008   
			 Conviction outcomes 828,535 85.7 76,947 79.3 905,482 85.1 
			 Unsuccessful outcomes 138,091 14.3 20,045 20.7 158,136 14.9 
			 Total completed outcomes 966,626  96,992  1,063,618  
			
			  2008 to 2009   
			 Conviction outcomes 810,605 87.3 84,000 80.9 894,605 86.6 
			 Unsuccessful outcomes 118,103 12.7 19,890 19.1 137,993 13.4 
			 Total completed outcomes 928,708  103,890  1,032,598

Prosecutors: Training

David Howarth: To ask the Solicitor-General what training is given to prosecutors who appear in youth courts to enable them to take account of the age and welfare needs of those aged under 18 years.

Vera Baird: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) provides a three-day training course, accredited by the Law Society and the Bar Council, that equips prosecutors to conduct youth court cases in a manner that takes into account the age, welfare and developmental needs of young defendants. The CPS also holds regular seminars and an annual inter-agency conference to inform prosecutors of legal, policy and practical developments affecting young defendants.

Solicitor-General: Meetings

Lynne Jones: To ask the Solicitor-General who else attended the meeting on 13 March 2003 between the then Attorney-General, Lord Falconer, and Baroness Morgan; what subjects were discussed at that meeting; what the duration of the meeting was; and whether an official record of the meeting was kept.

Vera Baird: The meeting is referred to in the disclosure statement made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 by the Cabinet Office and the (then) Legal Secretariat to the Law Officers on 22 May 2006. The statement can be found on the website of the Attorney General's Office at:
	http://www.attorneygeneral.gov.uk/sub_disclosure_log_2006.html
	No further information about the meeting is held.

Treasury Counsel

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General if she will make it her policy to employ Treasury Counsel on a permanent basis rather than engaging them on a case by case basis with a view to reducing expenditure on legal fees.

Vera Baird: The practice whereby First Treasury Counsel and the members of the Attorney-General's panel of civil counsel are engaged, as practising members of the Bar, to undertake work on individual cases on behalf of Government has served successive Administrations well. There is no intention at present to cease that practice and to engage them on a permanent basis as civil servants.

Treasury Solicitors Department

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what records exist of payments made by the Treasury Solicitor's Department to counsel instructed by it.

Vera Baird: The Treasury Solicitor's Department maintains electronic and paper records in relation to all payments made to counsel instructed by it. This will include information about disbursements and VAT.

Treasury Solicitors Department

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General which lawyers working in the Treasury Solicitor's Department have professional practising certificates.

Vera Baird: The Bar Council requires barristers who are employed by the Treasury Solicitor's Department to hold practising certificates. Therefore all those members of staff who are members of the Bar hold practising certificates. The Department's staff who are members of the Law Society are not required to hold practising certificates and therefore the Department does not hold records of those members of staff who are solicitors and hold practising certificates.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Complaints

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what mechanisms are in place to provide redress for individuals in circumstances in which the professional service provided by the Treasury Solicitor's Department is found to have been inadequate.

Vera Baird: The Treasury Solicitor's Department, in common with other Government Departments, has a complaints procedure for external complaints which is publicly available on its website. As well as this internal complaints procedure, an individual who considers that he or she has suffered an injustice as a result of maladministration by the Department may, through his or her Member of Parliament, make a complaint to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration, and details of how to do so are also included on the Department's website.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Complaints

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what requirements there are on the Treasury Solicitor's Department in respect of complaints made to it under the Lexcel procedures.

Vera Baird: The requirements are that there should be compliance with Rule 2 of the Solicitors' Code of Conduct, which addresses client relations and, among other matters, covers the provision of information on complaints.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Complaints

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General how many complaints have been made to the Treasury Solicitor's Department which have been recorded and processed under the Lexcel procedure in the last 12 months; and how many such complaints have still to be processed.

Vera Baird: Treasury Solicitors has recorded 20 external complaints under its complaints procedure (in compliance with Lexcel) within the last 12 months. Of these complaints 18 have been processed and two are outstanding.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Complaints

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what procedures are adopted by  (a) the Treasury Solicitor, including by a delegation to his Deputy, and  (b) the Law Officers in response to complaints against the Treasury Solicitor or counsel instructed by the Treasury Solicitor that they are acting for parties who claim to be independent of each other.

Vera Baird: The information is as follows:
	 (a) The detail of procedures adopted by the Treasury Solicitor's Department in respect of complaints that it receives has been set out in the answer to question 267479.
	 (b) The position in respect of the Treasury Solicitor's Department acting for more than one part of the Crown, or on behalf of bodies or persons who are not the Crown, is set out in the answer to question 267499.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Conflict of Interests

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General 
	(1)  what procedures exist within the Treasury Solicitor's Department to ensure that  (a) the Treasury Solicitor's Department and  (b) counsel receiving instructions when acting for more than one legal entity in the same case record any conflict of interest;
	(2)  what guidance the Treasury Solicitor's Department provides to its legal staff to ensure that legal professionalism is maintained in respect of potential conflicts of interest;
	(3)  what procedures there are to ensure that counsel instructed by the Treasury Solicitor do not act for parties with separate interests in disputes in which the Treasury Solicitor acts for more than one party and may have instructed the same counsel for more than one such party.

Vera Baird: The Treasury Solicitor's Department takes its understanding of the concept of "conflict of interest" from the Law Society's Solicitors' Code of Conduct.
	When the Treasury Solicitor, or counsel instructed by the Treasury Solicitor, acts for a Secretary of State, a Minister or a Government Department or agency, the client is the Crown itself (which is to say, the Crown in right of the Executive). There can be no conflict of interest in the legal professional sense in acting for a single client in more than one manifestation.
	Occasionally, while acting for the Crown, the Treasury Solicitor is requested to act on behalf of bodies or persons who are not the Crown. These may be non-departmental public departments or, very occasionally, individual Crown servants having a personal legal interest in a matter or claim. In such cases, where there is a possibility of conflict of interest, the Treasury Solicitor's Department operates under procedures that have been designed to be compliant with Lexcel, which is the Law Society's practice management standard. That standard embraces policy and practice in relation to conflict of interests. In pursuit of accreditation, the Department has prepared guidance for all its staff which explains the requirements of the Code and details procedures for identifying and handling potential conflicts of interest. Both the policy and the procedures are kept under review.
	The procedures have been designed to ensure that conflicts of interest are swiftly identified, the clients are informed and appropriate steps are taken to safeguard the interests of the parties concerned. Such steps may, where the interests of all parties cannot be properly safeguarded, involve the Department's declining to act for the non-Crown party.
	In any case where the question of conflict of interest has arisen, the case work file will contain a record of the consideration and the outcome.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Legal Costs

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what steps the Treasury Solicitor's Department takes on  (a) certifying and  (b) claiming costs for work undertaken to ensure that the quantum of costs claimed is accurate, taking into account the indemnity principle.

Vera Baird: The steps taken on  (a) certifying and  (b) claiming costs for work undertaken include the drawing up of a Bill of Costs which is checked by a law costs draftsman from the in-house costs team at the Treasury Solicitor's Department with reference to the following:
	(i) Information from the Treasury Solicitor's Department Finance Department is obtained which identifies all the elements of work which have been billed to the client Department, including all disbursements.
	(ii) Only elements of work which have been charged to the client Department are included in the subject matter of the costs recovery claim and any elements of work charged to a client Department which would not properly be recoverable from the other side are excluded.
	Ch. 112."
	(iv) The Bill of Costs is also usually sent to the Case Officer who had conduct of the litigation for a similar checking/verification process and to the client Department for approval.
	(v) On the return of the Bill from the client Department, the law costs draftsman carries out final checks and completes and signs a certificate as to its accuracy, on behalf of the Treasury Solicitor.
	In the context of a Summary Assessment of costs a Schedule of Costs is prepared and checked by the litigation case officer with assistance and input, where necessary, from the in-house costs team.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Legal Costs

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what guidance and training materials have been produced by the Treasury Solicitor's Department with regard to costs certifications and claims to ensure compliance with the indemnity principle; and when and how such guidance has been amended in the last five years.

Vera Baird: Ch. 112. During the last 18 months training in costs law and procedure has been delivered to all the litigation teams within the Department.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Manpower

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General how many lawyers working within the Treasury Solicitor's Department are of senior civil service rank; and how many of them are qualified to practise in England and Wales as  (a) solicitors and  (b) barristers.

Vera Baird: There are 61 qualified lawyers in the senior civil service in the Treasury Solicitor's Department. Of these, 39 are qualified solicitors and 22 are qualified barristers.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Manpower

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General how many lawyers below senior civil Service rank employed by the Government Legal Service are  (a) qualified solicitors in England and Wales,  (b) qualified barristers in England and Wales and  (c) not qualified solicitors or barristers in England and Wales.

Vera Baird: The Government Legal Service database holds records of 1,686 qualified lawyers below the senior civil service employed by Departments who are members of the Government Legal Service. Of these, 1,297 are qualified solicitors and 389 are qualified barristers. The database has no records of unqualified staff.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Manpower

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what policies and procedures exist to ensure that the Treasury Solicitor staff do not  (a) undertake work for which a solicitor's practising certificate is required and  (b) act for those for whom Government lawyers did not act prior to 1974; and what guidance is provided to the Treasury Solicitor's staff about such restrictions on activities.

Vera Baird: The information is as follows:
	 (a) The Treasury Solicitor is bound to act within the law and his Department is organised, and work is undertaken, accordingly.
	 (b) It is presumed that the reference to 1974 is a reference to the passing of the Solicitors Act of that year, which governs the activities of solicitors. The provisions of that Act are not understood as limiting the activities of the Treasury Solicitor or his Department to acting only for clients existing prior to that date.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Manpower

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what policies and procedures exist within the  (a) Treasury Solicitor's Department and  (b) the Government Legal Service to ensure that its lawyers do not act in conflict of interest situations with particular reference to acting for a party to a dispute and the adjudicator to the dispute.

Vera Baird: The Treasury Solicitor's Department takes its understanding of the concept of "conflict of interest" from the Law Society's Solicitors' Code of Conduct.
	As a part of its commitment to compliance with the code, the Department has sought and achieved accreditation with Lexcel which is the Law Society's practice management standard. That standard embraces policy and practice in relation to conflict of interests. In pursuit of accreditation, the Department has prepared guidance for all its staff which explains the requirements of the code and details procedures for identifying and handling potential conflicts of interest.
	Both the policy and the procedures are kept under review. In relation to the Government Legal Service, individual Departments are responsible for the conduct of lawyers employed by them.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Pay

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General who the 10 highest paid Treasury counsel were in each of the last three years; and how much each counsel received in each of those years.

Vera Baird: The 10 barristers (being either First Treasury Counsel or members of the Attorney-General's panel of civil counsel) receiving the highest fee payments from the Treasury Solicitor's Department in respect of instructions from that Department in the last three financial years were as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			  2006-07  
			 Mr. Philip Sales 530,986 
			 Mr. Tim Eicke 221,882 
			 Miss Lisa Giovannetti 184,172 
			 Mr. Jonathan Crow 165,657 
			 Mr. Andrew O'Connor 150,895 
			 Mr. David Barr 148,816 
			 Mr. Paul Gott 140,914 
			 Mr. Martin Chamberlain 139,248 
			 Mr. Jeremy Johnson 138,239 
			 Mr. Alan Payne 136,524 
			   
			  2007-08  
			 Mr. Philip Sales 551,163 
			 Mr. Jonathan Swift 226,680 
			 Mr. Jeremy Johnson 219,132 
			 Mr. Parishil Patel 217,303 
			 Miss Lisa Giovannetti 206,850 
			 Mr. Nicholas Moss 197,380 
			 Mr. James Eadie 182,520 
			 Mr. Andrew O'Connor 171,840 
			 Mr. Alan Payne 164,666 
			 Mr. Martin Chamberlain 158,993 
			   
			  2008-09  
			 Mr. Philip Sales 446,974 
			 Mr. David Evans 286,340 
			 Mr. Jonathan Swift 242,764 
			 Mr. Jeremy Johnson 235,182 
			 Mr. Alan Payne 186,555 
			 Mr. Jonathan Glasson 180,300 
			 Mr. Nicholas Moss 175,620 
			 Mr. Philip Coppel 175,129 
			 Miss Leigh-Ann Mulcahy 172,001 
			 Miss Lisa Giovannetti 164,962

Treasury Solicitors Department: Standards

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what obligations there are on the Treasury Solicitor and those working for him to comply with the professional obligations of lawyers with practising certificates.

Vera Baird: The holding of practising certificates does not, in itself, impose professional obligations on lawyers. The Treasury Solicitor and his legally qualified staff are under the same obligation to comply with the rules of their professions as any other practising lawyer, solicitor or barrister.

Treasury Solicitors Department: Standards

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Solicitor-General what guidance there is to ensure that the Treasury Solicitor's Department advises its clients on obligations concerning  (a) disclosure and  (b) statements of truth required in litigation; and what records are kept of material by the Treasury Solicitor on provision of such advice.

Vera Baird: The Crown and its servants are obliged to comply with the terms of the Civil Procedure Rules with regard to disclosure and the making of statements of truth.
	The Treasury Solicitor and his legally qualified staff owe the same duty of professional care to the Crown as any solicitor or barrister does to his or her client to act lawfully and in the client's best interests.
	As well as these requirements all civil servants are expressly bound by the Civil Service Code to "comply with the law and the administration of justice" and Government lawyers are additionally told by the Attorney General's Guidance Note for Government Lawyers "to give impartial, objective and frank advice". In providing such advice, they must "have particular regard to the fact that it is a fundamental obligation of Government that it should itself act in accordance with, and subject to, the law."
	Advice tendered to clients in the course of litigation will be a matter of record in the case file pertaining to the matter.

PRIME MINISTER

Cabinet

Bob Neill: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  in what circumstances the Minister of State in the Department for Communities and Local Government, the hon. Member for Doncaster Central, will attend Cabinet;
	(2)  in what circumstances the Minister for Housing will attend Cabinet meetings.

Gordon Brown: I refer the hon. Member to the ministerial appointments press notice issued by my Office. Copies are available in the Library of the House and are also available on the No. 10 website at:
	http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page19564

Foreign Relations

Adam Holloway: To ask the Prime Minister from which  (a) Heads of State and  (b) Heads of Government he received a letter of congratulation on his appointment.

Gordon Brown: Details of this correspondence is not made public, but I was grateful to receive such letters.

Government Departments: Security

Francis Maude: To ask the Prime Minister what criteria he uses when determining whether to request the Security Commission to investigate a breach of security in Government Departments.

Gordon Brown: The Prime Minister would refer a case to the Security Commission following consultation.

Members: Surveillance

David Davis: To ask the Prime Minister whether any hon. Member has been subject to  (a) official surveillance and  (b) interception of communications in the last two years.

Gordon Brown: The Wilson doctrine continues to apply to all forms of surveillance and interception that are subject to authorisation by Secretary of State warrant.

Ministerial Policy Advisers

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Prime Minister if he will publish an updated list of the Government's special advisers before the House adjourns for the summer recess.

Gordon Brown: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement I made on 16 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 73-76WS.

National Security Forum

Dai Davies: To ask the Prime Minister what meetings the National Security Forum has had in July 2009; and what matters were discussed at each meeting.

Gordon Brown: The Forum met in July, attended by me, to discuss a variety of issues put to it by the Cabinet Committee on national security, international relations and development. As I set out in my written ministerial statement on 9 March 2009,  Official Report, columns 3-4WS, the Government will report annually on its activity.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Agriculture: Subsidies

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many maps of their land submitted by farmers in claiming common agricultural policy subsidies in 2007-08 were judged by his Department to be materially incorrect.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) is responsible for the maintenance of mapping data used to support the single payment scheme (SPS) and other direct support schemes.
	RPA cannot determine which map notifications from farmers are materially incorrect (have incorrect boundaries and in field features), other than by undertaking an inspection of the farm. In each scheme year the RPA inspects 5 per cent. of SPS customers. As a result of these inspections, in the 2007 scheme year the need for mapping changes were identified in 3,284 farm businesses, which resulted in 18,375 amended fields. In the 2008 scheme year the need for mapping changes were identified in 3,033 farm businesses, which resulted in 20,860 amended fields.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for what reasons the Rural Payments Agency decided to issue a new set of maps in connection with claims for payments under the single payment scheme; and what estimate he has made of the likely cost of doing so. [R]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) is in the process of updating land information used to support the single payment scheme and other direct support schemes. The programme of work is under way to deliver the up-to-date geographic information system, required under EU regulations following criticism in European Commission audits which has the potential to result in financial penalties (disallowance). It is calculated that approximately 5 per cent. of land parcels change every year.
	RPA has projected a budget of £21.4 million (covering the period January 2007 to April 2010) to complete the programme of work which includes updating the Rural Land Register (RLR) data with the latest mapping information and confirming the link between each land parcel and a specific claimant; the strategy, necessary IT infrastructure and capability to update the RLR regularly and systematically in future to ensure it meets regulatory requirements and can support further service enhancements such as electronic access.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs by what date farmers are required to notify the Rural Payments Agency of amendments in relation to the new set of maps issued in connection with claims for payment under the single payment scheme; and within what time period the Rural Payments Agency will be required to confirm such amendments. [R]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) is asking farmers to respond within 28 days of receiving their updated maps. The agency appreciates this is a busy time of year and that farmers with a large number of land parcels may need more time to check their maps. In these circumstance farmers are asked to contact the RPA and agree an extended response date.
	Map amendments received by RPA within the 28-day period will be reviewed and, once accepted, should be confirmed in a new set of maps sent to the farmer approximately six to eight weeks later. Any map amendments sent in after the 28-day period will take longer to be accepted and confirmed.
	The mapping update is being done now as the application period for the 2009 single payment scheme (SPS) has passed and before the payment window opens. The updated maps should be used to pre-populate the 2010 SPS application forms.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the total monetary value of single farm payments withheld for  (a) cattle passport infringements and  (b) other infringements in (i) 2007-08 and (ii) 2008-09.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The monetary value withheld from single payment scheme (SPS) payments because of cattle passport and cattle identification infringements or other infringements is set out in the following table:
	
		
			  £ 
			  SPS Scheme Year  SPS money withheld for cattle passport and cattle identification infringements  SPS money withheld for other reasons 
			 2007 579,011 7,125,230 
			 2008 446,850 3,815,815 
		
	
	The figures are for 2007 and 2008 SPS years and do not correlate to financial years.

Air Pollution: EU Law

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the merits of requiring regional tiers of government to contribute to the payment of fines levied in respect of non-compliance with EU Directives on air quality; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: We have made no such assessment. It is for the European Court of Justice to decide whether any fine should be imposed as a result of a member state's non-compliance with EU legislation.

Climate Change: South East

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the likely effects of climate change on the  (a) ceremonial county of Hampshire and  (b) South East in the next 10 years.

Dan Norris: On 18 June, the Government published the latest UK Climate Projections. These projections show the potential changes in climate for the UK for a range of probabilities, climate variables and emissions scenarios. The data are provided by region to a scale of 25km grid squares in 30-year overlapping time slices, starting from the 30-year average between 2010-39. These data are freely available to all to make their own assessments of the likely effects of climate change. The Government have set the framework to allow local authorities to undertake their own assessments of the risks and effects from climate change into the future by including a new performance indicator (National Indicator 188 Planning to Adapt to Climate Change) in the local government performance framework. Under the Climate Change Act 2008 the Government are required to undertake a risk assessment of the impacts of climate change on the UK. The results of this risk assessment will include an assessment by region and are expected to be published in 2012.

Compost

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated research into the proportion of households with access to private gardens to facilitate home composting.

Dan Norris: The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has been funded by the Government to promote home composting as a sustainable means of reducing biodegradable waste going to landfill. WRAP estimates that around 80 per cent. of UK households have access to an open space in which they can undertake home composting (including wormeries/vermiculture). Such open spaces can include yards and balconies as well as gardens.

Dairy Farming: Finance

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will assess the merits of using funding from  (a) his Department's budget and  (b) Rural Development Programme for England programmes to assist dairy farmers in meeting the cost of slurry stores arising from obligations under the Nitrates Directive.

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ensure the budget available to England under the Rural Development Programme achieves the best possible value for money, it was decided not to implement measures within the Rural Development Regulation that provide assistance to farmers to adapt to standards based on Community legislation. To provide assistance to farmers that would only implement obligations under the Nitrate Pollution Prevention Regulations 2008 would offer no additionality-an important consideration in spending any taxpayers' money.
	No new central Government money will be made available for assisting farmers with the costs of meeting the manure storage capacity requirements established by the Nitrates Regulations. Capital grants could simply increase storage tank supply prices and merely postpone the impact of market forces. Providing grants would also contravene the 'polluter pays' principle.
	However, there are ways in which farmers can minimise the need for extra storage, through simple actions such as diverting rainwater away from slurry stores and covering storage tanks. We are providing advice and guidance on these actions and have provided a three-year implementation period.
	Slurry storage facilities may also be considered as plant and machinery and therefore eligible for plant and machinery allowances such as the new annual investment allowance, capped at £50,000 per year. Slurry pits also qualify for allowances in their own right under the Capital Allowances Act 2001.

Damian McBride

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what date he last met Mr. Damian McBride in the course of his official duties.

Dan Norris: Since the date of Mr. McBride's resignation (11 April 2009), my right hon. Friend has had no meetings with Mr. McBride.

Departmental Accountancy

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he expects to publish his Department's resource accounts for 2008-09.

Dan Norris: DEFRA intends to lay the Department's resource accounts for 2008-09 before Parliament by 21 July 2009, subject to clearance by the Comptroller and Auditor General. Publication will follow within one month of laying.

Departmental Electronic Equipment

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many  (a) photocopiers,  (b) scanning devices and  (c) fax machines, excluding multi-function devices, there are in his Department; how many there were in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Norris: DEFRA currently holds contracts with a number of suppliers for provision of photocopiers, scanning devices and fax machines. No central record of the numbers provided via individual contracts is held and therefore to obtain the number of machines across the Department would incur disproportionate cost.
	In the case of all three types of equipment, no ongoing record is kept of the number used so it is not possible to provide historical information for the last three years.
	DEFRA is actively involved in accelerating progress with Green ICT and has significant activity in place to reduce the carbon footprint of its IT estate. A print study is currently under way which will address all facets of document production including photocopying and scanning.

Departmental Manpower

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of employees in his Department are  (a) women and  (b) men; and what the average hourly pay of the (i) male and (ii) female employees in his Department was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Dan Norris: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The latest published data are as at 31 March 2008 and held within the Annual Civil Service Employment Survey statistics published by ONS, which can be accessed by using the following link.
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/pdfdir/cs0109.pdf

Domestic Waste: Waste Disposal

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will request the Waste and Resources Action Programme to produce best practice guidance on the operation of weekly collections of residual household waste.

Dan Norris: WRAP has produced guidance on a wide variety of collection approaches and best practice for specific material streams. Its forward work programme is agreed annually with DEFRA. DEFRA has not asked WRAP to produce guidance specifically on best practice on weekly collections of household waste to date. We will continue to work with WRAP to ensure the guidance that it provides gives a range of advice that is valuable to local authorities in assisting them in the decisions they have to make about approaches to collecting household waste at a local level.

Domestic Waste: Waste Disposal

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Beckenham of 9 October 2008,  Official Report, column 724W, on domestic waste: waste management, whether other local authorities have reinstated weekly collections of residual household rubbish  (a) in whole and  (b) in part for summer months.

Dan Norris: DEFRA does not keep such records and the Waste and Resources Action Programme is not aware of any other local authorities that have reinstated weekly collections of residual waste either in whole or in part since 9 October 2008.

Fisheries: Prosecutions

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many prosecutions for offences involving harm or disturbance to marine wildlife and habitats have been brought in each of the last five years.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The following table from the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) shows the number of prosecutions brought under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (for those sections for which data are available) from 2003 to 2007. The MOJ cannot separately identify from the Act those offences that specifically relate to offences involving harm or disturbance to marine wildlife and habitats.
	
		
			  Wildlife and Countryside Act Prosecutions 2003 to 2007 
			Defendants 
			  Statute  Offence description  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 S.28P as added by Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 Sch. 9 Carrying out or causing to permit to be carried out any operation likely to damage part of an area of special scientific interest subject to notification by Nature Conservancy Council 2 3 2 1 3 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Sec. 8 Protection of captive birds - 1 2 1 3 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Sec. 9 Protection of certain wild animals 3 4 7 22 13 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Sec. 11 Prohibition of certain methods of killing or taking wild animals. 1 - - 2 - 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 S.28Q as added by Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 Sch. 9 Change of owner or occupier in area of special scientific interest failing to comply with requirements - - - 1 - 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Sec. 1 Protection of wild birds 29 57 28 95 23 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Sec. 1 Protection of nests and eggs of wild birds 17 18 16 22 4 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Sec. 3 Protection of wild birds in sanctuaries 1 - - - - 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Sec. 5 Prohibition of certain methods of killing or taking wild birds 3 4 5 4 1 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Sec. 6 Sale etc. of live or dead wild birds, eggs etc. 1 1 - 2 1 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Sec. 17 False statements made for obtaining registration or licence etc. - 1 2 - 1 
			 Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 Sec. 7 Registration etc. of certain captive birds 2 1 - - - 
			 Total  59 90 62 150 49 
			  Notes: 1. The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2. Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: Court proceedings data held by RDS-Office for Criminal Justice Reform-Ministry of Justice.

Gatwick Airport: Noise

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to send to the right hon. Member for Tonbridge and Malling a copy of the report sent to the European Commission in relation to noise mapping of the area around Gatwick airport which he undertook to enclose in his letter to the right hon. Member of 9 June 2009.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Two copies of the report sent to the European Commission in relation to noise mapping around Gatwick airport were sent to the right hon. Member on 16 July.

Genetically Modified Organisms: Hampshire

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department has authorised sites in the non-metropolitan county of Hampshire for use for experiments relating to genetically-modified foods.

Dan Norris: Between 1995 and 1998 we authorised experimental trials of GM crop plants to take place at various sites in Hampshire, as set out in the following table. No trials have been authorised in Hampshire since 1998.
	
		
			  Town or village  Ordnance Survey grid reference  Crop type 
			 Martyr Worthy SU 518 341 Oilseed rape 
			 Martyr Worthy SU 514 340 Oilseed rape 
			 Martyr Worthy SU 519 340 Oilseed rape 
			 Martyr Worthy SU 515 333 Oilseed rape 
			 Martyr Worthy SU 526 333 Oilseed rape 
			 Martyr Worthy SU 515 334 Oilseed rape 
			 Martyr Worthy SU 526 345 Oilseed rape 
			 Martyr Worthy SU 527 343 Oilseed rape 
			 Martyr Worthy SU 518 341 Maize 
			 Martyr Worthy SU 528 332 Maize 
			 Weyhill SU 325 459 Oilseed rape 
			 Ashmansworth SU 42 56(1) Oilseed rape 
			 Tufton SU 473 448 Oilseed rape 
			 Bisterne SU 15 01(1) Maize 
			 Itchen Abbas SU 530 337 Oilseed rape 
			 Headbourne Worthy SU 48 32(1) Oilseed rape 
			 (1) Best available information

Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer Adjournment.

Dan Norris: My right hon. Friend has no current plans to do so.

Nature Conservation: Crime

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many reported incidents of wildlife crime there were in each of the last 10 years.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) has recorded wildlife incidents across the UK since April 2007. Information on incidents that occurred prior to April 2007 is not held centrally but would be available from each individual police force across the UK.
	The NWCU cannot currently provide details of how many of the following incidents have since been given a crime number by the reporting force. Therefore, these figures must be looked at only as incidents, not accurate figures of wildlife crime.
	
		
			  Incidents reported to NWCU (April 2007 to December 2007) for whole of UK 
			  Category of incident  Total 
			 Badger Persecution 128 
			 Bat Persecution 39 
			 CITES Caviar 0 
			 CITES Ivory 3 
			 CITES Other 12 
			 CITES Tortoises 4 
			 CITES Traditional Medicines 0 
			 Finch Trapping 1 
			 Fox Hunting 21 
			 Fresh Water Pearl Mussels 5 
			 Habitat Destruction 66 
			 Hare Coursing 98 
			 Nest Destruction/Disturbance 117 
			 Other 739 
			 Poaching-Deer 36 
			 Poaching-Fish 53 
			 Poaching-Other 35 
			 Poisoning (Non Raptors/Baits) 32 
			 Poisoning Raptors 17 
			 Raptor Persecution 69 
			 Release of Non Native Species 3 
			 Shooting 99 
			 Traps/Snares 64 
			 Wild Bird Egg/Chick Theft 17 
			 Grand total 1,658 
		
	
	
		
			  Incidents reported to NWCU (January 2008 to December 2008) for  whole of UK 
			  Category of incident  Total 
			 Badger Persecution 280 
			 Bat Persecution 100 
			 CITES Caviar 2 
			 CITES Ivory 5 
			 CITES Other 36 
			 CITES Tortoises 7 
			 CITES Traditional Medicines 5 
			 Finch Trapping 12 
			 Fox Hunting 141 
			 Fresh Water Pearl Mussels 9 
			 Habitat Destruction 127 
			 Hare Coursing 314 
			 Nest Destruction/Disturbance 129 
			 Other 1,267 
			 Poaching-Deer 170 
			 Poaching-Fish 115 
			 Poaching-Other 281 
			 Poisoning (Non Raptors/Baits) 42 
			 Poisoning Raptors 21 
			 Raptor Persecution 108 
			 Release of Non Native Species 9 
			 Shooting 205 
			 Traps/Snares 108 
			 Wild Bird Egg/Chick Theft 21 
			 Grand total 3,514 
		
	
	
		
			  Incidents reported to NWCU (January 2009 to July 2009) for whole of UK 
			  Category of Incident  Total 
			 Badger Persecution 241 
			 Bat Persecution 38 
			 CITES Caviar 0 
			 CITES Ivory 0 
			 CITES Other 16 
			 CITES Tortoises 7 
			 CITES Traditional Medicines 9 
			 Finch Trapping 5 
			 Fox Hunting 82 
			 Fresh Water Pearl Mussels 5 
			 Habitat Destruction 110 
			 Hare Coursing 261 
			 Nest Destruction/Disturbance 159 
			 Other 1,105 
			 Poaching-Deer 163 
			 Poaching-Fish 86 
			 Poaching-Other 355 
			 Poisoning (Non Raptors/Baits) 29 
			 Poisoning Raptors 22 
			 Raptor Persecution 49 
			 Release of Non Native Species 7 
			 Shooting 190 
			 Traps/Snares 104 
			 Wild Bird Egg/Chick Theft 21 
			 Grand total 3,064

Nature Conservation: Crime

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many people were charged with offences related to wildlife crime in each of the last 10 years.

Huw Irranca-Davies: Information on how many people were charged with offences related to wildlife crime in each of the last 10 years is not held centrally.

Nature Conservation: Crime

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many prosecutions for offences related to wildlife crime there were in each of the last 10 years.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The following table shows the number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for offences under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, Protection of Badgers Act 1992, Deer Act 1991, Control of Trade in Endangered Species (Enforcement) Regulation 1997, and the Conservation of Seals Act 1970, in England and Wales for the years 1998 to 2007.
	
		
			   Proceeded against 
			 1998 106 
			 1999 125 
			 2000 113 
			 2001 140 
			 2002 104 
			 2003 110 
			 2004 135 
			 2005 108 
			 2006 190 
			 2007 88

Oil: Waste Disposal

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance he has issued on the point at which a waste oil ceases to be considered a waste product.

Dan Norris: My Department has not issued guidance on the stage when a waste oil ceases to be waste. However, the Environment Agency has issued an end-of-waste protocol on "the production and use of processed fuel oil from waste lubricating oil". Waste lubricating oil which meets the criteria set in the post-consultation version of the protocol will be considered by the Agency to have ceased to be waste.

Recycling: Business

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what initiatives his Department is undertaking to encourage businesses to recycle waste.

Dan Norris: Since the Waste Strategy for England 2007 was published, DEFRA has been engaging with key waste stakeholders on priorities for commercial and industrial waste policy and we are aiming to publish a further statement of our strategic aims on commercial and industrial waste later this year.
	DEFRA funds a number of delivery bodies to help stimulate and support business to be more resource efficient and reduce and recycle its waste.
	These include:
	Envirowise-waste and water minimisation.
	The National Industrial Symbiosis Programme (NISP) to facilitate one operator's waste being used as a raw material by another.
	The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) to encourage recycling by business and consumers.
	The Centre for Reuse and Remanufacturing, the Construction Resources and Waste Platform to encourage greater resource efficiency in the construction sector.
	Action Sustainability to support more sustainable procurement.
	The Business Resource Efficiency and Waste (BREW) Centre for local authorities to provide tailored advice to business communities on waste and resource efficiency issues.
	In line with the Government's Business Support Simplification Programme and following the outcome of the Delivery Landscape Review, DEFRA has made WRAP responsible for overseeing funded support for material resource efficiency. The development and implementation of measures to minimise and recycle commercial and industrial waste will continue to be a key priority for this body.

Rural Payments Agency: Manpower

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many full-time equivalent members of staff of each grade have been employed by the Rural Payments Agency in each year since 2007.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Full-time equivalent members of staff by grade employed by the Rural Payments Agency in each year since 2007 are as follows:
	
		
			  Grade  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Senior Civil Servant 8 7 
			 Grade 6 24 27 
			 Grade 7 73 84 
			 Senior Executive Officer 155 163 
			 Higher Executive Officer 353 391 
			 Executive Officer 1,002 953 
			 Administrative Officer 1,910 1,708 
			 Administrative Assistant 15 6 
			 Staff total 3,540 3,339

Set-aside Schemes

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what timetable he plans for the establishment of a voluntary approach to set-aside.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Following a public consultation, on 9 July the Secretary of State announced our decision to pursue an industry-led voluntary approach to set-aside mitigation, known as the Campaign for the Farmed Environment. The campaign has already established its key principles, agreed targets and attracted support from a range of industry partners, Government and others. A memorandum of understanding between the various parties is close to completion and the campaign is working up more detailed plans.

Sheep: Tagging

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 6 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 531-32W, on sheep: tagging, when he plans to announce his proposals for the further reduction of the implementation burden on the industry of the electronic identification of sheep.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Further changes were secured to Council Regulation 21/2004 on 14 July at the Standing Committee of the Food Chain and Animal Health. These changes permit movements to be read on behalf of keepers at central reading points, such as markets and abattoirs. We estimate that this change will save the UK sheep industry between £7 million and £18 million each year.
	Combined with the two-year deferment to implementation and the other changes that were secured, the overall cost to the industry could be reduced by up to £65 million, depending on how the industry uses the concessions which were won for them.
	In England we will be working closely with industry over the coming months to put in place a practical and workable system for electronic identification of sheep by 31 December 2009.

Trading Standards

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what procedures are in place to facilitate information-sharing between his Department and trading standards officials.

Jim Fitzpatrick: DEFRA assesses each request to share information on its merits, in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998, the Human Rights Act 1998 and any other applicable legislation, to ensure effective and cost-efficient delivery of public services. If a regular exchange of information is required, data-sharing protocols can be set up to facilitate the process.
	There is a close working relationship between Animal Health and Trading Standards in the larger rural counties. Information sharing takes place on many levels:
	Working together on enforcement issues including animal welfare cases and many other Animal Health enforcement issues results (notably bovine tuberculosis) in sharing of information on an informal and weekly/daily basis.
	Additional funding for Trading Standards offices has been supplied from DEFRA in recent years. Monitoring/auditing this work and our partnership has been done in regular meetings (often quarterly) under what we call the Framework Agreement. This involves sharing of information on a more formal basis.
	Animal Health managers are invited to Trading Standards regional meetings of the Central England Animal Health and Welfare Group (CenTSA) on a quarterly basis where information can be shared.
	There is an IT system referred to as AMES where information on the activities of Trading Standards staff is recorded. These data are available to both Animal Health and Trading Standards.
	Requests from Trading Standards are occasionally received for Animal Health to supply data from Animal Health IT systems. With due regard to data protection legislations, these requests are usually facilitated.

Waste Disposal: Private Finance Initiative

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many waste management private finance initiative schemes have been successfully concluded to date; and how many such schemes are awaiting planning permission.

Dan Norris: 19 waste management private finance initiative (PFI) schemes have reached financial close to date. Six of these projects are currently awaiting planning permission.

Waste Disposal: Private Finance Initiative

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many waste disposal private finance initiative schemes have been successfully concluded to date; and how many such schemes are awaiting planning permission.

Dan Norris: To date, 19 waste private finance initiative (PFI) schemes have reached financial close. Of the 19 closed projects there are 18 in which the scope of the service includes ultimate disposal of waste. Six of these projects are currently awaiting planning permission for the disposal facility.

Water Charges

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment has been made of the environmental effects of the proposed new surface water drainage charge system.

Huw Irranca-Davies: In 2003, following a review of the various options, Ofwat recommended that charging in relation to site area is the fairest approach to charging for surface water drainage. The larger the site area, the more surface water is likely to drain from it. Charging by site area therefore better reflects the actual costs imposed on the system by customers.
	Charging by site area is also considered to be the most environmentally responsible approach in that it provides a financial incentive for site owners to reduce the amount of water that is directed into the public sewerage system. Options for achieving reductions include such things as: replacing an asphalt or concrete car parking area with a gravel one, and the installation of soakaways. This will reduce the likelihood of flooding from overloaded sewers.
	Surface water drainage needs to be managed more sustainably, by allowing for the increased capture and reuse of water, slow absorption through the ground, and more above-ground storage and routing of surface water separate from the foul sewer, where it is appropriate to do so. Water should increasingly be managed on the surface, rather than relying on the wholesale upgrade of the sewer system which would be a costly and lengthy process.
	The Environment Agency has estimated that around two-thirds of the flooding in summer 2007 was due to surface water. Surface water flooding is extremely difficult to predict as it is often a result of sudden localised rainfall events, and very small variations in the built environment can have significant effects on the way the water flows.

Water Charges

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average  (a) metered and  (b) unmetered water bill was in each water company area in each year since 1989.

Huw Irranca-Davies: A spreadsheet giving figures for metered and unmetered water bills in each water company area since 1989, in 2009-10 prices, has been placed in the Library of the House.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many rounds of each type of ammunition were discharged during the last roulement in Afghanistan.

Bill Rammell: Officials are collating and validating the data needed and this is taking longer than anticipated. I will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many urgent operational requests made in relation to Afghanistan in the last 12 months had not been met by 13 July 2009; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: The Urgent Operational Requirement (UOR) process exists to address unforeseen capability gaps for imminent or current operations. Over 70 UORs for Afghanistan were approved in the period 13 July 2008 to 13 July 2009. We would generally expect these programmes to begin delivering capability to theatre between six and 18 months after approval. We would not, therefore, expect the majority of requirements associated with these programmes to be fully met within the period stated in the question.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Adam Ingram: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which non-NATO member countries have contributed to the ISAF military mission to Afghanistan in each of the last five years; and what contribution each such country has made.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 20 July 2009
	There are currently 14 non-NATO nations contributing to ISAF operations. They are as follows:
	Australia
	Austria
	Azerbaijan
	Bosnia and Herzegovina
	Finland
	Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
	Georgia
	Ireland
	Jordan
	New Zealand
	Sweden
	Singapore
	Ukraine
	United Arab Emirates
	Details of contributing nations are available on the NATO website at
	http://www.nato.int/isaf/structure/nations/index.html
	Information about each nation's contributions is a matter for each nation. Information from 2007 is available at
	http://www.nato.int/isaf/docu/epub/pdf/placemat.html

Armed Forces: Aviation

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many and what percentage of flights  (a) to and  (b) from operational theatres have been (i) cancelled and (ii) delayed in each year since 2007; what the (A) location and (B) destination was of each such delayed flight; and what the (1) the length of time of and (2) reason for the delay was of each such delayed flight.

Bob Ainsworth: I will write to the hon. Member.
	 Substantive answer from Bill Rammell to Liam Fox:
	My predecessor undertook to write to you in answer to your Parliamentary Question of the 13 May 2009 (Official Report, column 762W) about the number of airbridge aircraft delayed in each year since 2007.
	Delay statistics are routinely collected for the passenger airbridge only. The passenger airbridge has provided a consistent and reliable service over the period, moving large numbers of personnel into sometimes hostile environments and under difficult conditions. Every effort is made to minimise delays and over 92% of airbridge flights arrive within six hours of their scheduled time.
	No airbridge tasks to Op Telic or Op Herrick have been cancelled since 2007. Delays may occur for a number of reasons. The location and reason for each delay is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. Individual tasks could be delayed for more than one reason. Examples include: Air Traffic Control and airspace restrictions, missing imposed theatre arrival slot times, technical and equipment failures, diplomatic clearance, weather, crew duty hours, passenger and ground handling issues, fuelling, and holding aircraft to facilitate deployment of priority aeromedical teams to theatre.
	Information on delays to civil aircraft chartered by the MOD to operate the passenger airbridge is given in the following tables. For 2007 delays were measured against the scheduled time of departure. Since January 2008 delays have been measured against scheduled time of arrival. It is not possible to distinguish between outbound and inbound charter flights. The data are held by calendar year and percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number.
	
		
			  Op Telic civil chartered aircraft delays to and from theatre 
			   Operated on time or within 1 hour  % on time or within 1 hour  Delayed 1-3 hours  % 1-3 hours  Delayed 3-6 hours  % 3-6 hours  Delayed 6 hours and over  % 6 hours and over 
			 2007 February to December 289 65 106 24 30 7 17 4 
			 2008 376 85 21 5 16 4 28 6 
			 2009 January to April 98 86 9 8 0 0 7 6 
		
	
	
		
			  Op Herrick civil chartered aircraft delays to and from theatre 
			   Operated on time or within 1 hour  % on time or within 1 hour  Delayed 1-3 hours  % 1-3 hours  Delayed 3-6 hours  % 3-6 hours  Delayed 6 hours and over  % 6 hours and over 
			 2007 February to December 63 82 11 14 2 3 1 1 
			 2008 111 94 4 3 0 0 3 3 
			 2009 January to April 117 80 12 8 6 4 12 8 
		
	
	Information on delays to RAF Tristar aircraft undertaking the passenger airbridge outbound from the UK to Op Herrick is given in the following table. Delays have been measured against scheduled time of arrival. The data are held by financial year and percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number.
	
		
			  Op Herrick RAF Tristar UK to theatre 
			  Financial year  Operated on time or within 1 hour  % on time or within 1 hour .  Delayed 1-3 hours  % 1-3 hours  Delayed 3-6 hours  % 3-6 hours  Delayed 6 hours and over  % 6 hours and over 
			 2007-08 176 72 44 18 19 8 5 2 
			 2008-09 152 57 59 22 29 11 25 9 
		
	
	Information on delays to RAF Tristar aircraft undertaking the passenger airbridge inbound from the Op Herrick theatre to the UK are only available from January 2008 and are given in the following table. Delays are measured against the scheduled time of departure from theatre and the available statistics only allow identification of delays of between 1-3 hours and over 3 hours. The data are held by financial year and percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number.
	
		
			  Op Herrick RAF Tristar theatre to UK 
			   Operated on time or within 1 hour  % on time or within 1 hour  Delayed 1 -3 hours  % 1-3 hours  Delayed 3 hours and over  % 3 hours and over 
			 2008 January to March 30 67 7 16 8 18 
			 Financial year 2008-09 121 51 59 25 55 23

Armed Forces: Detainees

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the names are of all detainees who have died in the custody of UK forces in each year since 2001; and what the  (a) date and  (b) cause of death was in each case.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 3 March 2009
	The following table lists the detainees that have died while within the custody of the UK in Iraq. Where known, the official cause of death is included. However, burial is often within 24 hours in accordance with religious custom, preventing a post mortem from occurring.
	
		
			  Operation T elic 
			  Date of death  Name of deceased  Post Mortem Cause of Death 
			 12 April 2003 Tanik Mahmud Not established 
			 8 May 2003 Ahmed Jabber Kareem Drowned 
			 8 May 2003 Radhi Nama (Radhi Nu'ma Jaber) Heart Attack 
			 17 May 2003 Abd Al Jubba Mousa Ali Not established 
			 24 May 2003 Said Shabram Not established 
			 7 August 2003 AJKhalif Not established 
			 15 September 2003 Baha Mousa Asphyxia 
			 10 April 2004 Unknown Not established 
		
	
	Those Afghans involved in engagements with coalition or Afghan forces who died within a UK facility in Afghanistan from the wounds they sustained in these engagements are listed in the following table. Despite our best efforts, these eight individuals did not survive what were life-threatening injuries. No detainees have died while in a UK detention facility in Afghanistan.
	
		
			  Operation H errick 
			  Date of death  Name of deceased  Post Mortem Cause of Death 
			 13 January 2007 Unknown Not established 
			 5 April 2007 Haji Mohammad Not established 
			 5 April 2007 Ghos Mohammad Not established 
			 30 April 2007 Unknown Not established 
			 3 July 2007 Hadi Abdul Not established 
			 15 July 2007 Sardar Mohammed Not established 
			 5 December 2007 Abdul Ahad Not established 
			 8 September2008 Unknown Not established 
		
	
	To the best of our knowledge this is a complete record. My predecessor's statement to the House on 26 February reported on detention records in Afghanistan since the deployment of Task Force Helmand in July 2006 and on detention records in Iraq from 15 December 2003 onwards. Most of the fatalities listed above for Iraq occurred before 15 December and so were not covered in that statement. It is also possible that incidents that occurred before 15 December 2003 in Iraq are not captured in our records.

Armed Forces: Discharges

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the armed forces retired from front line operational duties for reasons of ill health in each year since 1997.

Kevan Jones: The single services record the numbers of personnel who are at any one time "unfit for task" or "unable to deploy", although their figures do not distinguish between the majority who are temporarily non-deployable and the minority for whom this is a permanent diagnosis. Details of the numbers of personnel "fit for task" and "fit to deploy" in each quarter since 2006 were given in my answers to the hon. Member for Woodspring (Dr. Fox) on 20 and 22 January 2009,  Official Report, columns 1262-64W and 1664-66W, and to the hon. Member for North Devon (Nick Harvey) on 28 April 2009,  Official Report, column 1156W.
	The numbers of personnel in these categories will be constantly changing and the majority of armed forces personnel who for medical reasons become temporarily unfit to deploy to front line duties will subsequently recover and return to full fitness. In a relatively small number of cases, their injury or condition may mean that they become permanently unable to deploy. Reasons for this are various, but might include a serious permanent injury (physical or mental) or because during service they develop a medical condition that is incompatible with front line duties.
	The majority of those personnel who fall into the category of medically "not fully fit" remain fit enough to work in some capacity and therefore continue to make a contribution to operational effectiveness, often within theatres of operation.
	Service personnel with medical conditions or fitness issues which affect their ability to perform their duties will generally be referred to a medical board for a medical examination and review of their medical grading. In clear-cut cases where the individual's fitness falls below the service employment and retention standards, the board will recommend a medical discharge without further delay. In many cases however, the patient will first be downgraded, to allow for treatment, recovery and rehabilitation. For personnel who do not make a total recovery, the board may recommend the patient is retained as permanently downgraded with limited duties, or they may recommend a medical discharge. The numbers of service personnel medically discharged during the period 1997 to 2008 are shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Year of medical discharge  Naval Service (Royal Navy and Royal Marines)  Army  RAF 
			 1997 392 1,062 232 
			 1998 454 1,069 160 
			 1999 456 1,148 178 
			 2000 483 1,063 187 
			 2001 414 1,035 185 
			 2002 392 1,022 137 
			 2003 320 998 251 
			 2004 379 1,084 202 
			 2005 396 1,047 207 
			 2006 357 1,009 241 
			 2007 350 1,000 229 
			 2008 332 842 192 
			 Total 4,725 12,379 2,401

Armed Forces: Health Services

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) average, ( b) shortest and  (c) longest period of time is for newly trained medical officers to be allocated to postings in the latest period for which figures are available.

Kevan Jones: The arrangements in place for the three services are as follows.
	All newly qualified military doctors have to undertake two years of foundation training after qualifying from medical school. They then have to complete the course for new entry officers relevant to their particular service, normally six months for the Royal Navy and Army, five months for the Royal Air Force.
	In the case of the Royal Navy and the Army, these courses are followed by assignments to ships, Royal Marine commando units, medical regiments, Field Army units or medical centres. RN Medical Officers appointed to submarines undertake a further six months of submarine specific training. In the RAF officers are assigned after the new entry course to GP vocational training, specialist hospital training or to supervised practice in an RAF medical centre.
	The period of time from the start of foundation training until initial posting into either a service delivery appointment or, in the case of the RAF, specialty training, can thus be expressed as follows.
	
		
			  Months 
			   Shortest period  Longest period  Average period 
			 Royal Navy 30 36 32 
			 Army 30 30 30 
			 Royal Air Force 29 29 29

Armed Forces: Helicopters

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) required and  (b) actual number of training instructors for each helicopter type was in each of the last five years.

Bill Rammell: Qualified Helicopter Instructors (QHIs) are taught at RAF Shawbury by the tri-service Central Flying School (Helicopters).
	The current requirement and actual number of armed forces QHIs are provided in the following table.
	
		
			  Helicopter Type  Required number of instructors  Actual number of instructors 
			 Lynx 49 40 
			 Gazelle 5 5 
			 Apache 40 35 
			 N3 Dauphin 2 2 
			 Bell 212 Griffin 53 49 
			 Squirrel 19 18 
			 Chinook 25 23 
			 Puma 27 20 
			 Merlin 39 31 
			 Sea King 52 46 
			 Augusta 109 0 0 
		
	
	Historical figures are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The figures provided are the required establishment and the available strength to fulfil the task, and represent flying instructors in current flying instructional positions of all ranks. To avoid double-counting, each instructor is shown only once against a single type, but 13 QHIs instruct on more than one aircraft type, and in this sense the table understates the availability of instructors by type. In addition, the figures in the table do not include those who previously qualified as instructors but are currently employed in other, non-instructor, Defence posts as part of their career development.
	Since the answer given by the then Minister for the Armed Forces (Mr. Ingram) to the hon. Member for Portsmouth, South (Mr. Hancock) on 29 March 2006,  Official Report, column 1004W, the number of Apache QHIs has almost doubled. However, the 2009 establishment figure has been raised recently from 35 to 40 to increase training capacity.
	Required and actual numbers will both vary with time due to many factors including operational requirements, the introduction of newly trained instructors on completion of training courses at set times during the year, injuries, and service leavers. Differences between required figures and actual figures also reflect the time taken to train an instructor on new aircraft types, such as Merlin.

Armed Forces: Higher Education

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many  (a) masters and  (b) doctoral military students attending the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom his Department has funded since 2003;
	(2)  what expenditure his Department incurred on postgraduate education for serving members of the armed forces in each year since 2003; and what estimate he has made of such expenditure in each of the next three years.

Bill Rammell: Three colleges within the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom offer courses which are classed as postgraduate education and include either masters or doctorates.
	The fees and numbers attending postgraduate education at the Defence Academy College of Management and Technology for serving members of the armed forces in the period 2003-12 are shown in the table:
	
		
			  Table 1 
			  Academic year  Cost (£ million)  Military staff on masters courses  Military staff on doctorates 
			 2002-03 9.5 (1)- (1)- 
			 2003-04 9.4 (1)- (1)- 
			 2004-05 9.9 (1)- (1)- 
			 2005-06 9.0 248 3 
			 2006-07 6.4 315 7 
			 2007-08 7.8 366 13 
			 2008-09 6.9 418 11 
			 2009-10 7.4 470 15 
			 2010-11 (2)- (2)- (2)- 
			 2011-12 (2)- (2)- (2)- 
			 (1) This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. (2 )Costs and student numbers are not planned to vary significantly from the 2009-10 figures during these two academic years although there may be a modest increase in numbers.  Notes: 1. Figures are provided by academic year (1 September-31 July). 2. The figures in the cost column do not include: salaries of students, accommodation costs or Defence Academy overheads. The figures cover die cost of all postgraduate courses and activities during that academic year but it should be noted that some civil servants and overseas students will also have attended these courses and their costs have not been separated out. 
		
	
	The fees and charges relating to a masters degree offered by Royal College of Defence Studies are as follows:
	
		
			  Table 2 
			  Academic year  Cost (£ million)  Military staff undertaking a masters 
			 2003 0.009 3 
			 2004 0.020 6 
			 2005 0.036 11 
			 2006 0.036 11 
			 2007 0.022 6 
			 2008 0.018 5 
			 2009 0.049 11 
			 2010-11-12 (1)0.066 (1)8 
			 (1 )Per year  Note: The RCDS offers to its membership an optional MA in International Studies. The option is usually taken up by a quarter of the course. The RCDS course itself provides 60 per cent. of the MA with the remaining 40 per cent. being completed through supplementary seminars, essays, dissertations and exams. 
		
	
	The fees and charges relating to masters degree offered by Joint Services Command and Staff College during the Advanced Command and Staff Course are as follows:
	
		
			  Table 3 
			  Academic year  Cost (£ million)  Military staff undertaking a masters 
			 2002-03 0.042 139 
			 2003-04 0.040 130 
			 2004-05 0.041 135 
			 2005-06 0.044 148 
			 2006-07 0.043 143 
			 2007-08 0.046 152 
			 2008-09 0.048 161 
			 2010-11-12 0.048 (1)160 
			 (1) Proposed  Note: These are not full term masters degrees; they are postgraduate degrees gained through supplementary work and an exam on top of the accreditation to the masters degree earned through participation on the JSCSC Advanced Command and Staff Course. 
		
	
	The information requested relating to the courses attended by service personnel outside of the Defence Academy is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Armed Forces: Mental Health

Clare Short: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his latest estimate is of the incidence of  (a) post-traumatic stress disorder and  (b) other mental illnesses among soldiers in each age group who have served in (i) Bosnia, (ii) Kosovo, (iii) Iraq and (iv) Afghanistan.

Kevan Jones: The MOD's Defence Analytical Services and Advice (DASA) organisation publishes statistics on new attendances to the MOD's Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMH) in the UK Armed Forces Psychiatric Morbidity reports. Reports for the whole of 2007 and 2008 are now available both in the Library of the House and on the DASA website at:
	www.dasa.mod.uk
	DASA only analyses attendances by deployment on recent operations to the Iraq and Afghanistan theatres of operation. Breakdowns by deployment to Bosnia and Kosovo could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The following table shows the number of new attendances at the MOD's DCMHs in 2008 who were assessed as having a mental disorder at an initial assessment and who had been deployed to the Iraq theatre of operation prior to their appointment. The number of these individuals who were assessed as having post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is also included.
	
		
			  Age  Strength  Patients assessed with a mental disorder  Of which :  A ssessed with PTSD 
			 Under 20 1,100 33 - 
			 20 to 24 16,000 353 28 
			 25 to 29 23,100 403 26 
			 30 to 34 17,400 250 21 
			 35 to 39 19,500 286 20 
			 40 to 44 9,600 102 - 
			 45 to 49 4,200 28 0 
			 50+ 1,700 8 0 
			 '-' Signifies a number fewer than 5. 
		
	
	The following table shows the number of new attendances at the MOD's DCMHs in 2008, who were assessed as having a mental disorder at an initial assessment and who had been deployed to the Afghanistan theatre of operation prior to their appointment. The number of these individuals who were assessed as having PTSD is also included.
	
		
			  Age  Strength  Patients assessed with a mental disorder  Of which:  Assessed with PTSD 
			 Under 20 1,000 35 0 
			 20 to 24 9,700 174 22 
			 25 to 29 11,200 171 12 
			 30 to 34 7,700 108 14 
			 35 to 39 8,000 115 8 
			 40 to 44 3,900 43 - 
			 45 to 49 1,800 11 0 
			 50+ 700 4 - 
			 '-' Signifies a number fewer than 5. 
		
	
	Both tables include individuals who have been deployed to both the Iraq and Afghanistan theatres of operation. Therefore, some individuals will appear in both tables.
	Finally, the following table shows the number of new attendances at the MOD's DCMHs in 2008 who were assessed as having a mental disorder at an initial assessment and who had not deployed to either the Iraq or Afghanistan theatres of operation prior to their appointment. The number of these individuals who were assessed as having PTSD is also included.
	
		
			  Age  Strength  Patients assessed with a mental disorder  Of which:  Assessed with PTSD 
			 Under 20 13,600 213 8 
			 20 to 24 22,000 440 7 
			 25 to 29 14,400 235 - 
			 30 to 34 8,300 167 - 
			 35 to 39 10,900 174 - 
			 40 to 44 7,300 76 - 
			 45 to 49 5,000 44 - 
			 50+ 3,600 20 - 
			 '-' Signifies a number fewer than 5.

Armed Forces: Mental Health

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what provision has been made for the psychological rehabilitation of members of the armed forces returning from military operations; how much funding has been made available for such provision in 2009-10; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what percentage of members of the armed forces returned from military operations with  (a) a psychological disorder and  (b) post-traumatic stress disorder in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Kevan Jones: Diagnosis and treatment of mental health disorders in the armed forces is performed by fully trained and accredited mental health personnel, and measures are in place to increase awareness at all levels and to mitigate the development of operational stresses. In Afghanistan, we deploy uniformed mental health nurses to provide the necessary in-theatre care and treatment for our personnel. If personnel need to leave the operational environment, then their care continues either on an out or in-patient basis in the UK.
	In the UK, our mental health services are configured to provide community-based mental health care, primarily through our 15 military Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMH) across the UK (plus satellite centres overseas), which provide out-patient mental health care. The DCMH mental health teams comprise psychiatrists, mental health nurses, clinical psychologists and mental health social workers. A wide range of psychiatric and psychological treatments are available (including psychological therapies, environmental adjustment and medication) where appropriate. The Defence Mental Health Services have particular expertise in treatments for psychological injury.
	For the relatively small number of patients who need it, in-patient care is currently provided by a group of seven NHS trusts located throughout England and Scotland, led by South Staffordshire and Shropshire NHS Foundation Trust (SSSFT) through a central MOD contract.
	The organisational structure of the Defence Medical Services means that comprehensive figures for mental health care expenditure cannot be provided without disproportionate cost as the sums involved are disaggregated and embedded in the budgets of individual military units and overall operational budgets. Under the contract with SSSFT, payment for in-patient care is made on a case-by-case basis; as a point of comparison, payments totalling £3.3 million were made for in-patient care in 2008-09; most of this was paid to the previous in-patient provider.
	Since July 2007 the Defence Analytical Services and Advice (DASA) organisation has reported on the Psychiatric Morbidity of the UK Armed Forces. Quarterly reports for 2007 and 2008 are available in the Library of the House and on the DASA website found at the following link:
	www.dasa.mod.uk

Armed Forces: Mental Health

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 377W, on armed forces: mental health, what recent inspections of the Department of Community Mental Health have been carried out.

Kevan Jones: The Healthcare Commission reported its review of the Defence Medical Services (DMS) in March 2009. As part of that review it looked at the provision of mental health care and visited military Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMHs) in Plymouth, Lisburn and Cranwell.
	All three Defence Medical Services have processes for inspecting DCMHs, utilising a Common Healthcare Assurance Framework which is based on the Department of Health's "Standards for Better Health". All DMS units will be subject to a biennial set of visits, utilising the framework, from the single services. In addition, the post of inspector-general has been established recently within the Surgeon General's Department and his team will visit units as part of his clinical audit and assurance activities.

Armed Forces: Mental Health

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 377W, on armed forces: mental health, what mechanisms are in place for monitoring the health of service personnel diagnosed with a mental health disorder.

Kevan Jones: Service personnel who are identified as suffering from a mental health condition will be followed up or referred on by the medical staff who first had contact with them. Some personnel will have their conditions managed wholly by primary care staff, who also have the capability to downgrade medically personnel if required; to treat and refer on personnel to military Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMHs); or to liaise with DCMH staff if advice is required, including cases where direct referral to an in-patient facility might be appropriate.
	Patients are provided with appropriate treatment and care. If patients cannot be returned to a medically fit state consistent with continuing service, then they will be medically discharged from their service. If this route is required, DCMH social workers will continue to support discharged personnel for the year following discharge to ensure they are getting appropriate care within the NHS.

Armed Forces: Mental Health

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 377W, on armed forces: mental health, what mental health assessments are provided for service personnel who report to the Department of Community Mental Health.

Kevan Jones: Personnel who are referred to one of the military Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMHs) will undergo a routine biopsychosocial assessment which will comprise an interview with a mental health professional. This usually takes the form of a one-to-one interview, although further reports (for example, from medical providers or from the chain of command) may be requested and psychometric questionnaires might be used where appropriate. The initial DCMH assessment will focus not just on the problem that led to referral but will take a holistic approach to the difficulties that an individual might be experiencing at the time of referral.

Armed Forces: Mental Health

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 377W, on armed forces: mental health, whether the Department of Community Mental Health provides treatment for  (a) nicotine, (b) alcohol,  (c) drug and  (d) other addictions.

Kevan Jones: Our military Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMHs) provide treatment for addictive behaviours, with referral to in-patient facilities if this is necessary, where individuals are retained in service. Smoking cessation services are provided within primary care. It is frequently the case that such treatment is provided in conjunction with chain of command-led workplace support. Personnel with an addiction that is incompatible with continuing service in the HM armed forces will be supported by military mental health staff during the discharge process.

Armed Forces: Suicide

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many active service personnel are known to have committed suicide following service in either Iraq or Afghanistan since those engagements commenced.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 20 July 2009
	We are aware of a total of 27 regular service personnel whose deaths have been recorded as coroner confirmed suicides or open verdicts and who had previously served in Iraq or Afghanistan. The areas of deployment are:
	24 who had been deployed to Iraq only;
	one who had been deployed to Afghanistan only;
	two who had been deployed to both operational theatres.
	There have also been five Reservist personnel whose deaths were recorded as suicide or open verdict who had previously served in Iraq.
	Additionally there are currently nine deaths that are classified as violent and unnatural causes, where the mechanism is consistent with suicide, but have yet to be confirmed as either a suicide or open verdict by a coroner.
	There were two deaths of personnel in Afghanistan and four in Iraq that have been found to be suicide.

Armed Forces: Training

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) required and  (b) actual number of phase (i) 1 and (ii) 2 training instructors is in each of the armed services.

Bill Rammell: The requirement and actual figures for instructors in phase 1 and 2 training for the services as of 3 July 2009 is shown in the following table (rounded to the nearest 10). There is a difference between the required and actual strength of instructors due to the posting process, operational manning requirements, instructors leaving post, and instructors being able to cover more than one course.
	
		
			  (i) Phase 1  (a) Required instructors  (b) Actual instructors 
			 Army(l) 1,730 1,710 
			 Royal Navy 590 540 
			 Royal Air Force 280 250 
		
	
	
		
			  (ii) Phase 2  (a) Required instructors  (b) Actual instructors 
			 Army 2,100 1,940 
			 Royal Navy 760 660 
			 Royal Air Force 1,190 1,070 
			 Defence Intelligence and Security College (DISC) 140 130 
			 Joint Medical Command (JMC) 50 50 
			 RAF Honington (Phase 1 and Phase 2 combined) 70 60 
			 (1) Phase 1 instructor figures for the Army include those at the Infantry Training Centre Catterick, where the combined Phase 1/Phase 2 Combat Infantryman's Course is taught and the Phase 2 Infantry Course for those who completed their Phase 1 training at either the Army Foundation College Harrogate or at the Army Training Regiment Winchester. 
		
	
	The instructor numbers shown for each service include the defence colleges which are grouped together under that service. The Defence Intelligence and Security College (DISC) and Joint Medical Command (JMC) which do not provide phase 1 training, do not fall under single service management and are therefore shown separately.
	It is not possible to differentiate between numbers of phase 1 and phase 2 instructors at RAF Honington, as the split can fluctuate with personnel movement.

Armed Forces: Training

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the drop-out rate is of each recruit training establishment listed in the Ofsted report on the duty of care for recruits and trainees in the armed forces.

Bill Rammell: The drop-out percentages for financial year 2008-09 (termed as Premature Voluntary Outflow-this comprises all those who elected to leave the service of their own accord) for the training establishments listed in the Ofsted report on the duty of care for recruits and trainees in the armed forces, are shown in the following table. The percentages shown are typical of what the Department expect given the nature of the military training undertaken:
	
		
			  Training establishment  Drop-out rate (percentage) (rounded to nearest 1 per cent.) 
			 25 Training Regiment-Deepcut 21 
			 Defence Medical Services Training Centre 5 
			 HMS Raleigh 7 
			 Army Training Centre, Pirbright 19 
			 RAF Halton, Recruit Training Squadron 9 
			 Defence School of Transport 8 
			 RAF Regiment, Regimental Training Squadron (Basics), RAF Honington 27 
			 Army School of Ammunition, Kineton 18 
			 Commando Training Centre, Royal Marines 31 
			 Army Training Regiment, Bassingbourn 19 
			 Army Training Regiment, Winchester 21 
			 Infantry Training Centre, Catterick 24

Armed Forces: Training

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to announce the maingate timetable for the Defence Training Review Programme.

Bill Rammell: The DTR Package 1 programme is under review. I anticipate an announcement of the new date for the Package 1 Main Gate to be made to the House in the autumn.

Armed Forces: Training

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what date he plans to award the pre-contract agreement letter on Defence Training Review Package 1 to the preferred bidder.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The mandatory sitting 14 days for the PCAL2 Review Note submitted in the Departmental Minute to Parliament on 26 June expired on 17 July. However, the PCAL2 underwrite is still subject to the normal process of negotiation and agreement with the preferred bidder, which is ongoing.

Armed Forces: Young People

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people under 18 years old serving in the armed forces have been court-martialled in each of the last five years; and what charges were brought at each court-martial where proceedings have been completed.

Kevan Jones: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for North Devon (Nick Harvey) on 1 September 2008,  Official Report, columns 1446-47W. Further to that answer, I can add that the number of service personnel under 18 years old court-martialled in 2008, and the charges they faced were as follows:
	 Royal Navy:
	1 x Battery
	 Army :
	1 x Battery
	1 x Assault occasioning actual bodily harm and the supply of drugs

Armed Forces: Young People

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many  (a) males and  (b) females under 18 years old of each (i) age, (ii) ethnic origin and (iii) disability have been detained with adults in the Military Correction Training Centre in Colchester in each of the last five years.

Bill Rammell: The Military Correction Training Centre (MCTC) is a key pillar of the military criminal justice system, which has proved to be successful. It is not a prison; it is a military unit, established for military corrective training. It provides detention facilities for men and women of the armed forces and can hold a number of different categories of detainees, the majority of whom are not sentenced for criminal offences and return to their military duties on release.
	The provision of information broken down into the categories requested may lead to the identification of one or more of the individuals. This information is regarded as sensitive data and its release would contravene the Department's policy on disclosure and confidentiality.
	The total number of personnel under 18 years of age who have been detained in the Military Corrective Training Centre in Colchester in each of the last full years is provided in the following table.
	
		
			   Number of personnel 
			 2004-05 15 
			 2005-06 (1)- 
			 2006-07 10 
			 2007-08 5 
			 2008-09 (1)- 
			 2009-10 (1)- 
			 (1) Fewer than 5. 
		
	
	The figures have been rounded to the nearest five to limit disclosure and ensure confidentiality.

Army: Manpower

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the  (a) required and  (b) actual personnel medically fit for purpose strength is for each battalion of the infantry;
	(2)  what the  (a) required,  (b) actual and  (c) fit for duty strength of each infantry battalion is.

Bill Rammell: The Army's manning situation is improving fast due to a number of factors including the introduction of exceptional action measures, financial incentives, improved marketing and the current economic situation. However, there will be fluctuations in the strength of individual battalions, according to their planned duties at any specific time.
	'Required strength' has been interpreted as the maximum number of posts in a battalion's peace time configuration.
	'Actual strength' has been interpreted as the number of personnel assigned to a battalion for its planned duties. It will also include augmentees who are temporarily assigned if needed to support the role of the battalion (for operational military tasks and events that cannot be achieved within required strengths). Similarly, the figures exclude those assigned out of the battalion to augment other units.
	'Fit for duty' has been interpreted as fit for primary role, including personnel listed as having limited deployability, plus personnel who are unfit for deployment but who can perform a role in an alternative capacity. The difference between the actual strength and number fit for duty represents those who are medically non-effective, i.e. are unfit for any form of duty.
	'Medically fit for purpose' has been interpreted as fit for primary role, including personnel listed as having limited deployability, but excluding those who are not fit to deploy and those who are medically non-effective for any form of duty.
	The figures requested are shown in the following tables:
	
		
			  Division  Unit  Required strength  Actual strength  Number fit for duty  Number medically fit for purpose 
			  Guards 1 Grenadier Guards 632 549 544 502 
			  1 Coldstream Guards 629 587 557 534 
			  1 Scots Guards 685 580 574 549 
			  1 Irish Guards 633 584 583 561 
			  1 Welsh Guards 626 608 596 570 
			   
			  Scots 1 Scots 630 493 493 454 
			  2 Scots 627 479 473 437 
			  3 Scots 629 616 611 595 
			  4 Scots 686 548 522 497 
			  5 Scots 657 535 533 517 
			   
			  Queens 1 Princess of Wales Royal Regiment 685 638 626 598 
			  2 Princess of Wales Royal Regiment 605 588 588 566 
			  1 Royal Regt. Fusiliers 686 616 610 597 
			  2 Royal Regt. Fusiliers 626 546 539 516 
			  1 Royal Anglian 670 707 692 665 
			  2 Royal Anglian 629 635 627 604 
			   
			  Kings 1 Lancs 658 684 676 619 
			  2 Lancs 612 597 593 572 
			  1 Yorks 629 586 574 572 
			  2 Yorks 623 495 494 459 
			  3 Yorks 686 549 541 497 
			   
			  Prince of Wales 1 Mercian incl. Gurkha Reinforcement Company 2 628 612 608 573 
			  2 Mercian 623 549 544 527 
			  3 Mercian 659 616 610 570 
			  1 Royal Welsh 623 580 577 551 
			  2 Royal Welsh 751 679 671 633 
			   
			  Rifles 1 Rifles 623 683 683 654 
			  2 Rifles 623 679 668 647 
			  3 Rifles 623 634 632 631 
			  4 Rifles 711 682 677 660 
			  5 Rifles 686 785 -785 763 •-- 
			   
			  Royal Irish 1 Royal Irish 650 564 554 529 
			   
			  Para 2 Para 650 633 617 602 
			  3 Para 650 603 602 590 
			   
			  Royal Gurkha Rifles 1 Royal Gurkha Rifles 643 631 623 612 
			  2 Royal Gurkha Rifles incl. Gurkha Reinforcement Company 1 758 841 838 807 
		
	
	In addition to the battalions shown above there are three incremental Guards companies which are primarily for public duties but which can also be used to augment the other Guards battalions as required;
	
		
			  Unit  Required strength  Actual strength  Number fit for duty  Number medically fit for purpose 
			 Nijmegen Coy Grenadier Guards 108 110 110 101 
			 7 Coy Coldstream Guards 108 82 81 77 
			 F Coy Scots Guards 108 93 92 90 
		
	
	The figures in both tables include personnel filling all roles within each battalion, not just infantrymen.

Chinook Helicopters

Peter Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Chinook helicopters are inoperable because they are awaiting modifications.

Quentin Davies: In addition to eight Chinook Mk3 aircraft that are being converted to provide additional support helicopter capability, there are currently four Chinook Mk2/2a helicopters that are being modified to provide them with an enhanced capability on operations.

Defence: Procurement

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent estimate he has made of the cost of preparing the Defence Industrial Strategy; and when the strategy will be published.

Bob Ainsworth: We remain committed to the Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS) 2005, which we intend to update in due course. No recent estimate has been made of the total cost of the DIS.

Defence: Procurement

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he last met representatives of Nexter to discuss defence procurement.

Kevan Jones: The Secretary of State for Defence has not met with representatives of Nexter to discuss defence procurement.

Departmental Buildings

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what properties  (a) his Department,  (b) its agencies and  (c) its non-departmental public bodies have sold in each of the last five years; and how many have been sold for housing developments.

Kevan Jones: I will place a copy of the list of land and property sold by the Department and its agencies in each of the last five years, together with an indication of the expected planning use in the Library of the House. This replaces any previous lists. It should be noted that actual future use is a matter for the purchasers and local planning authorities to determine.
	The MOD and the Department for Communities and Local Government are delivering affordable housing as part of wider Government agenda. We have in the past sold a large number of strategic sites to DCLG, including Oakington barracks in Cambridge, Connaught barracks in Dover and Roussillon barracks in Chichester. This relationship continues with other sites at Aldershot, Daws Hill and Borden being currently discussed.
	 Substantive answer from Kev a n Jones to Grant Shapps:
	In my answer of 27 April (Official Report, column 1022W) I undertook to write to you with details of what Ministry of Defence (MOD) properties have been sold in each of the last five years and how many have been sold for housing developments.
	The requested list of properties, including details of their expected planning use, has been placed in the Library of the House.
	This list does not include details of sites which subsequent to sale by this Department may have been sold on and then used for residential development. This issue is would be a matter for the new owner and MOD does not maintain a record of such cases.

Departmental Databases

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what categories of personal information on members of the public are contained on each database which contains such data managed by his Department and its agencies; when each category of information was first collected; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what databases managed by his Department and its agencies hold personal information on members of the public; on what date each such database became operational; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  which of the planned databases that will be managed by his Department or one of its agencies and which will hold personal information on members of the public are expected to become operational in each of the next five years; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: Ministry of Defence officials are currently collating and validating the data needed to answer these questions. I will write to the hon. Member again shortly.

Departmental Finance

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's  (a) gross resource outturn,  (b) operating appropriations on aid outturn,  (c) gross capital outturn and  (d) non-operating appropriations on aid outturn was under each budgetary sub-heading in (i) near cash and (ii) non-cash terms for the financial year 2007-08.

Bill Rammell: I have placed a copy of this information in the Library of the House.

Departmental Housing

Neil Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many units of accommodation of  (a) one,  (b) two and  (c) three or more bedrooms his Department retains for the purposes of accommodating serving (i) officers and (ii) officials on long-term secondment to his Department; and what his most recent estimate is of the average annual (A) gross and (B) net cost of each type of accommodation in each such category.

Kevan Jones: I will write to the hon. Member.
	 Substantive answer from Kevan Jones to Neil Turner:
	I undertook to write to you in answer to your Parliamentary Question on 14 May 2009 (Official Report, column 946W), about Service accommodation for senior Officers and officials on long- term secondment to the Department.
	Service accommodation is provided to house entitled Service personnel and their families in accordance with the entitlements set out in the Tri-Service Accommodation Regulations (TSARs). The Ministry of Defence (MOD) currently holds the following numbers of Service Family Accommodation properties (SFA) to accommodate entitled senior officers:
	
		
			  Type  Bedrooms  Indicative Entitlement  UK SFA  Overseas SFA 
			 I 4/5 Major General and equivalent and above 68 9 
			 II 4/5 Colonel and equivalent and above 316 36 
		
	
	Senior Officers may also occupy SFA of a lesser type in cases where SFA to entitlement is not available or in other circumstances set out in the TSARs.
	All Officers of the equivalent rank of major and above are entitled to Single Living Accommodation (SLA) comprising an en-suite bedroom and separate sitting area. There are currently 2,418 SLA bed-spaces of this type in the UK with a further 219 overseas.
	The information on cost is not held in the format requested and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
	The MOD does not retain any accommodation for the purposes of accommodating civilian officials. However, in areas where there is a temporary surplus of SFA, eligible civilians may occupy properties on a non-entitled basis, on the understanding that it be vacated if required for an entitled Service family. The number of civilians who occupy SFA on this basis is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Future Large Aircraft

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will terminate negotiations with partner countries on procurement plans for the A400M aircraft.

Quentin Davies: I have no immediate plans to terminate discussions with partner nations and I am continuing to seek acceptable conditions under which the UK can continue to support the programme. I am meeting with Ministers from participating nations on 24 July, with the objective of reaching a joint decision on the future of the A400M programme.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with the Joint Strike Fighter consortium on final assembly and checkout of the aircraft in the UK.

Quentin Davies: The primary production facility for the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) has been established at Lockheed Martin's plant in Fort Worth, Texas, building on the huge investment already made in the development phase of JSF, 90 per cent. of which has been funded by the US. All nine JSF partner nations that have signed the JSF Production, Sustainment and Follow-on Development (PSFD) Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in 2006, including the UK, are committed to funding an equitable share of this production facility, which will eventually produce in excess of 3,000 JSF aircraft. It is our intention to use this best value solution for the build of all UK JSF aircraft.
	UK industry has benefited within the development programme to date and is well placed to continue through production. We estimate UK industry will provide in excess of 10 per cent. of the JSF production programme as we progress through the PSFD phase.

Military Aircraft

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) required and  (b) actual crew number for each aircraft type in the armed forces was in each of the last five years.

Bill Rammell: The historical information requested is not held centrally and could be produced only at disproportionate cost.
	The required and actual crew number for each aircraft type in the armed forces as at 9 July 2009 is given in the following table. Air crew numbers fluctuate on a day-by-day basis as individuals are re-assigned, medically downgraded or leave the service. The variations in the required and actual crew numbers are principally due to an increased requirement to support new and increased aircraft types, such as the Typhoon, where it takes time to train aircrew to meet the associated manpower requirement. Similarly, aircraft types such as the Hercules C130K and Tornado F3 are in the process of drawing down and crew numbers are temporarily in excess of requirement. These changes are reflected in the figures. However, action is taken to ensure that current operations are not affected.
	
		
			  Aircraft type  Required  Actual 
			  Royal Navy:   
			 Lynx Mk 3/8 133 124 
			 Merlin Mk 1 189 174 
			 Sea King Mk 5 68 65 
			 Sea King Mk 7 46 43 
			
			  Army Air Corps:   
			 Apache AH Mk 1 100 80 
			 Lynx Mk 7/9 100 106 
			 Gazelle Mk 1 34 34 
			 Dauphin N3 AH Mk 1 7 6 
			 Bell 212 24 24 
			 SAAVN 46 41 
			
			  Royal Air Force:   
			 Hercules C130J 201 191 
			 Hercules C130K 178 168 
			 VC10 146 124 
			 TriStar 103 98 
			 C17A 91 81 
			 HS125 17 16 
			 BAel46 10 7 
			 Tornado GR4 267 248 
			 Typhoon 67 60 
			 Tornado F3 32 50 
			 Nimrod MR2 320 273 
			 Nimrod R1 119 103 
			 Sentinel R1 35 24 
			 E3D 114 94 
			 KingAir 32 27 
			 Dominie 51 40 
			 Tutor EFT 35 47 
			 Tutor 15 21 
			 Tucano 56 54 
			 Hawk 102 89 
			 Puma 127 129 
			 Chinook 262 222 
			 Merlin 159 130 
			 Squirrel 20 19 
			 SeaKing 140 132 
			 Griffin 62 61 
			 Augusta 109 5 5 
			 Reaper 34 34 
			 Islander 8 8 
			
			  Navy and RAF:   
			 Joint Force Harrier 66 66

Military Aircraft

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his most recent estimate is of the cost per flying hour of a  (a) Tornado and  (b) Typhoon jet.

Quentin Davies: I will write to the hon. Member.
	 Substantive answer from Quentin Davies to Nick Harvey:
	I undertook to write to you in answer to your Parliamentary Question of the 13 July 2009 (Official Report, column 27W), asking for the most recent estimate of the cost per flying hour of a (a) Tornado and (b) Typhoon-jet. I apologise for the delay in replying.
	The total cost per funded flying hour is provided in the table below.
	
		
			 Aircraft Cost (K) Financial Year 2009-10 
			 Tornado F3 45K 
			 Tornado GR4 28K 
			 Typhoon 90K 
		
	
	This includes forward and depth servicing, fuel costs, crew costs, training costs and the cost of capital charge and depreciation. The Typhoon cost per flying hour reflects the smaller numbers of aircraft currently in the fleet and their relatively short period in service. This is expected to reduce significantly over the in-service life of the aircraft.

Military Aircraft: Helicopters

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the  (a) planned and  (b) actual average flying hours for each helicopter type in the (i) Army, (ii) Royal Navy and (iii) Royal Air Force were in each month of (A) 2008 and (B) 2009 to date.

Bill Rammell: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the then Minister for the Armed Forces on 7 January 2008,  Official Report, column 44W.
	Between November 2006 and April 2009, we have increased flying hours for helicopters in Afghanistan by 84 per cent.
	The following tables give the total planned and actual flying hours, including training as well as operations, for each helicopter type by month from January 2008 to May 2009:
	
		
			  Army Air Corps 
			   Apache  Augusta  Gazelle  Lynx Mk7/9 
			   Planned  Actual  Planned  Actual  Planned  Actual  Planned  Actual 
			  2008 
			 January 1,119 861 80 67 1,186 706 1,152 1,341 
			 February 1,259 1,270 90 68 1,334 937 1,296 1,685 
			 March 1,259 1,096 90 89 1,334 968 1,296 1,581 
			 April 1,152 1,085 80 100 875 1,007 1,655 1,543 
			 May 1,058 1,110 90 73 984 1,092 1,428 1,184 
			 June 1,152 1,180 90 94 984 1,325 1,428 1,381 
			 July 1,199 1,195 90 155 984 1,340 1,428 1,465 
			 August 1,246 1,231 60 83 656 1,046 1,057 885 
			 September 1,199 1,459 100 122 1,094 1,104 1,552 1,529 
			 October 1,293 1,171 90 104 984 1,070 1,778 1,578 
			 November 1,340 1,067 80 61 875 726 1,655 1,707 
			 December 920 947 60 66 656 442 1,407 1,022 
			  
			  2009 
			 January 1,249 1,112 80 46 875 440 1,655 1,293 
			 February 1,202 1,217 90 56 984 514 1,778 1,343 
			 March 1,390 1,657 90 72 984 564 1,778 1,880 
			 April 1,320 940 80 100 495 565 1,559 1,532 
			 May 1,151 936 90 49 549 647 1,376 802 
		
	
	
		
			  Royal Navy 
			   Lynx Mk3  Lynx Mk8  Merlin Mk1 
			   Planned  Actual  Planned  Actual  Planned  Actual 
			  2008   
			 January 555 537 555 421 387 332 
			 February 555 658 555 513 387 280 
			 March 555 447 555 490 366 142 
			 April 200 439 200 548 199 295 
			 May 555 469 555 463 334 232 
			 June 555 588 555 541 334 214 
			 July 555 658 555 432 334 189 
			 August 200 198 200 164 198 38 
			 September 560 619 560 570 334 283 
			 October 555 600 555 403 334 396 
			 November 555 609 555 343 334 150 
			 December 200 429 200 287 198 142 
			
			  2009   
			 January 334 207 555 456 856 439 
			 February 334 205 555 339 1,006 484 
			 March 203 177 555 395 950 631 
			 April 342 153 190 377 600 513 
			 May 517 485 517 388 980 603 
		
	
	
		
			   Sea King Mk4/6  Sea King  Mk5  Sea  King  Mk7 
			   Planned  Actual  Planned  Actual  Planned  Actual 
			  2008   
			 January 387 332 441 323 909 991 
			 February 387 280 441 401 1,023 992 
			 March 366 142 439 298 1,023 917 
			 April 199 295 228 366 895 877 
			 May 334 232 382 373 1,007 1,084 
			 June 334 214 382 318 1,007 1,099 
			 July 334 189 382 361 1,007 1,085 
			 August 198 38 228 310 671 585 
			 September 334 283 382 362 1,118 1,143 
			 October 334 396 382 365 1,007 1,121 
			 November 334 150 382 359 895 1,038 
			 December 198 142 382 304 671 793 
			  2009   
			 January 334 144 383 388 1,118 1,122 
			 February 334 207 382 412 1,007 887 
			 March 334 205 382 366 783 1,105 
			 April 203 177 243 334 1,155 832 
			 May 342 153 408 460 1,267 1,068 
		
	
	
		
			  Royal Air Force 
			   Chinook  Merlin Mk  3/3a  Puma  Sea King Mk  3/3a 
			   Planned  Actual  Planned  Actual  Planned  Actual  Planned  Actual 
			  2008 
			 January 1,268 1,182 503 401 963 748 900 820 
			 February 1,300 1,120 473 440 1,084 582 900 820 
			 March 1,300 1,130 590 519 1,084 647 900 820 
			 April 1,344 1,404 559 595 1,012 793 791 790 
			 May 1,336 1,223 531 518 1,101 813 791 790 
			 June 1,365 1,289 569 551 1,051 676 791 790 
			 July 1,422 1,471 600 560 1,051 781 791 790 
			 August 1,292 1,329 651 467 784 643 791 790 
			 September 1,394 1,333 649 604 1,140 725 791 790 
			 October 1,372 1,432 719 680 1051 799 791 790 
			 November 1,336 1,168 711 498 962 762 791 790 
			 December 1,132 847 515 462 784 516 791 790 
			  
			  2009 
			 January 1,306 1,079 665 555 962 708 791 790 
			 February 1,306 1,267 649 524 1,051 677 791 790 
			 March 1,307 1,539 732 638 1,051 926 791 790 
			 April 1,303 1,353 744 611 885 569 851 760 
			 May 1,310 1,183 744 579 886 801 851 855 
		
	
	It is normal for there to be considerable variation between monthly "planned" and "actual" flying hours. "Planned" hours are based on the total amount of flying that could be supported by the Platform Project Teams for a given aircraft type and are not broken down by individual airframe. There is no requirement to hold data on average flying hours. The figures are agreed in Joint Business Agreements (JBAs) between Front Line Commands (FLCs) and the Defence Equipment and Support organisation, and are forecast up to a year ahead. The month by month Profile is to enable forward resource planning within the overall total for the year, not a definitive prediction of requirements, which will vary during the year.
	"Actual" hours are the total of all hours flown for training and on operations.
	The reasons why actual hours may be less than planned include aircraft unavailability through routine maintenance, running repairs, essential upgrades and modification programmes; air crew unavailability through recuperation, absence on training courses, and leave; changes in training schedules; adverse weather; or cancellation of tasking. Taskings on operations clearly depend on mission requirements at any given time, which are difficult to predict several months ahead.
	Flying hours required for training are managed within this framework by the FLCs but priority is given to operations.
	"Planned" flying hours not consumed may be carried forward into subsequent months. Hours flown on operations in excess of the year's JBA total flying hours may be funded by the reserve.

Military Aircraft: Helicopters

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the merits of equipping UK military helicopters with air-to-air refuelling capabilities.

Quentin Davies: While we keep our helicopter capabilities under review, there is currently no requirement to equip our helicopters with air-to-air refuelling capabilities.

NATO Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on UK membership of the NATO Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence.

Bob Ainsworth: The United Kingdom is fully supportive of this Estonian-hosted Cyber Defence initiative and its endeavours in this important area. However, given the need to co-ordinate Cyber Defence with a number of other Government Departments and allies, the MOD's preferred means of support is by participation in specific mutually beneficial workstreams rather than attaching personnel permanently to Estonia. The United Kingdom is not formally a sponsoring nation of this Centre of Excellence but this position will be kept under review.
	Both the current Head of the MOD Defence Security and Assurance Service and his predecessor, as well as other senior officers, have visited the Co-operative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence, participated in its conferences, and provided additional assistance to its development over the past two years.

Navy: Drug Seizures

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what drug seizures were made by Royal Navy vessels since 1997; where the seizures took place; what the value of each seizure was; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: I will write to the hon. Member.
	 Substantive answer from Bill Rammell to Nick Harvey:
	In my predecessor's written answer, on 12 May 2009, (Official Report, column 753W), it was undertaken to write to you regarding your request for a list of the drug seizures made by Royal Naval vessels since 1997; where the seizures took place; and what the value of each seizure was. In the course of this research, US officials have been consulted, who have kindly shared information from their own very detailed records.
	As you will recognise, disrupting illegal trafficking of weapons and narcotics is among the many important tasks we ask our Armed Forces to conduct. The Royal Navy conducts Flag State Verification procedures on Gulf Region Shipping and has also provided significant support to US counter-narcotics operations in the Caribbean. Further disruption operations are conducted whenever opportunities arise during the Royal Navy's standing patrol tasks, including within UK territorial waters, in support of operations led by the Serious Organised Crime Agency. These operations have contributed to the seizure of large quantities of illegal narcotics which otherwise might have ended up on UK, US and European streets. A comprehensive list of seizures since 1997 is set out below. This information updates previous estimates and draws on additional information provided by US law enforcement officials.
	
		
			  Year  Month  Unit  Location  Quantity  Est  v alue  (£) 
			 1997 Apr HMS York Home Waters 4 tonnes cannabis 11.5 million 
			  June HMS Edinburgh Home Waters 3 tonnes cannabis 8.6 million 
			   
			 1998 June HMS Monmouth Home Waters 2 tonnes cannabis 8 million 
			   
			 1999 Mar HMS Marlborough Caribbean 0.5 tonnes (assessed) jettisoned 20 million 
			  May HMS Marlborough Caribbean 4.7 tonnes 188 million 
			  May HMS Marlborough Caribbean 4.6 tonnes 184 million 
			  Aug HMS Northumberland Caribbean 0.45 tonnes (assessed) jettisoned 18 million 
			  Oct HMS Northumberland Caribbean 0.85 tonnes (assessed) jettisoned 34 million 
			  Nov HMS Northumberland Caribbean 2.12 tonnes; 7 Kgs of heroin 85 million 
			   
			 2000 Jun HMS Manchester Caribbean 0.85 tonnes (assessed) jettisoned 34 million 
			   
			 2001 Sep HMS Coventry Belize 1200 Kgs cocaine 48 million 
			   
			 2002 Jul HMS Newcastle Caribbean 100 bales marijuana note 2 
			  Jul HMS Newcastle Caribbean 23 bales cocaine note 2 
			  Sep HMS Grafton Caribbean 21 bales marijuana note 2 
			  Oct HMS Grafton Caribbean 750 Kg cocaine 30 million 
			  Nov HMS Grafton Caribbean 7 bales marijuana (5 bales lost) note 2 
			   
			 2003 May HMS Cumberland Home Waters 3800 Kgs cocaine 152 million 
			  Jun HMS Iron Duke Caribbean 131 bales/3275Kg cocaine 131 million 
			  Sep RFA Wave Knight Caribbean 116lbs marijuana 152,000 
			  Oct HMS Manchester Caribbean 1052 Kgs cocaine 42 million 
			   
			 2004 Jan RFA Wave Knight Caribbean 650Kgs cocaine 26 million 
			  Nov RFA Wave Ruler Caribbean 1.8 tonnes cocaine 72 million 
			   
			 2005 Jan RFA Wave Ruler Caribbean 1.8 tonnes cocaine 72 million 
			  Jan RFA Wave Ruler Caribbean 1.7 tonnes cocaine 68 million 
			  Mar RFA Wave Knight Caribbean 1.5 tonnes (assessed) cocaine jettisoned by smugglers 40 million 
			  Feb RFA Wave Ruler Caribbean 0.93 tonnes cocaine 37 million 
			  May HMS Liverpool/RFA Wave Knight Caribbean 400 lbs cannabis; 0.998 tonnes cocaine; further 0.3 tonnes (assessed) jettisoned by smugglers 53 million 
			  Jun HMS Liverpool Caribbean 850 lbs cannabis; 0.3 tonnes (assessed) cocaine jettisoned by smugglers. 13 million 
			  Jul RFA Wave Ruler Caribbean 3.0 tonnes (assessed) cocaine jettisoned by smugglers 120 million 
			  Sep HMS Cumberland Caribbean 1.5 tonnes (assessed) cocaine jettisoned by smugglers 60 million 
			  Oct HMS Cumberland/RFA Wave Knight Caribbean 1.756 tonnes cocaine 70 million 
			   
			 2006 Feb HMS Southampton/RFA Grey Rover Caribbean 2.223 tonnes cocaine; a further 2.0 tonnes (assessed) jettisoned by smugglers. 169 million 
			  Sep RFA Wave Ruler Caribbean 2.5 tonnes cocaine 100 million 
			  Oct RFA Wave Ruler Caribbean 2.789 tonnes cocaine 112 million 
			  Oct HMS Argyll/RFA Gold Rover Atlantic (West Africa) 1.5 tonnes cocaine 60 million 
			  Nov HMS Argyll/RFA Fort Austin 849 NAS East Atlantic 1.33 tonnes cocaine 53 million 
			  Nov RFA Wave Ruler Caribbean 4.0 tonnes cocaine 160 million 
			  Nov RFA Wave Ruler Caribbean 2.04 tonnes cocaine 82 million 
			  Dec HMS Lancaster W Africa 3.5 tonnes (assessed) cocaine jettisoned by smugglers 140 million 
			   HMS Iron Duke East Atlantic   
			   
			 2007 May HMS Ocean Caribbean 12 bales cocaine note 2 
			  Jun HMS Ocean Caribbean 329 Kgs cocaine; 20 Kgs heroin 14 million 
			  Oct HMS Portland/RFA Wave Knight Caribbean 3.3 tonnes (assessed) cocaine jettisoned by smugglers 132 million 
			  Dec RFA Largs Bay Caribbean 1.125 tonnes cocaine 45 million 
			   
			 2008 Mar HMS Edinburgh Middle East 7 tonnes hashish 20 million 
			  Apr HMS Montrose Middle East Waters 6-10 tonnes hashish (assessed) jettisoned by smugglers. 17 million-29 million 
			  Mar HMS Edinburgh Middle East-Waters 3.5 tonnes hashish 10 million 
			  Apr HMS Montrose Middle East Waters 10 tonnes hashish 29 million 
			  Apr HMS Chatham Middle East Waters 6 tonnes hashish 17 million 
			  Jun HMS Iron Duke Caribbean 1.125 tonnes cocaine 45 million 
			  Jul HMS Iron Duke Caribbean 1.2 tonnes (assessed) cocaine jettisoned by smugglers 48 million 
			  Jul HMS Iron Duke Caribbean 2477 coca field plants from helicopter survey. n/a 
			  Sep HMS Argyll RFA/Fort Austin Home Waters 100 kg cocaine 4 million 
			  Oct HMS Northumberland Middle East 20 Kg Hashish; 1000 Kg (assessed) jettisoned 2.9 million 
			  Dec HMS Portland Middle East 1.4 tonnes hashish 4 million 
			   
			 2009 Feb HMS Richmond Middle East Waters 80-90 bales (approx 2000kg) of hashish jettisoned by smugglers 5.7 million 
			  Apr HMS Portland Middle East 27 bales (each of 31 Kgs) hashish (837 Kgs) 2.4 million 
			  Notes: 1. SOCA estimates, as at June 2009, of UK street values have been applied to all seizures. 2. Where only the number of bales is known/estimated, but not their weight, no street value can be estimated retrospectively. 
		
	
	The results from forensic analysis of the many seizures in the Caribbean, provided to us by the American Joint Inter-Agency Task Force (South), have enabled us to update many of our previous estimates of the size of these seizures. Our previous answers were drawn from figures often estimated by the UK vessel at the time of the interdiction; subsequent investigations by law enforcement officials would usually have been completed after the UK vessel had left the vicinity and thus not reflected in the initial UK estimate. For interdictions when cargoes were jettisoned by the traffickers we have continued to provide the sizes assessed by the UK crew before the contraband was lost.
	The table also includes a small number of additional interdictions that have not previously been reported. In some cases these omissions are due to different approaches by individual UK ships in recording an incident as a 'seizure' or as an 'interdiction' (which may have resulted in a jettison). In others cases the reliance upon disparate ships' records may have resulted in a small number of accidental omissions as our historic responses were consolidated. The positive outcome is that the Royal Navy has had an even greater impact on narcotics trafficking than previously reported.
	It is very difficult to estimate street value of the illegal drugs seized or destroyed in these operations. The price varies greatly depending on a number of factors including supply and demand, the intended destination of the product as well as the purity of the drugs themselves when they reach their market. Not all of the seized drugs would have been intended for the UK, however for simplicity the estimated values in the table are based on the assumption that the product would have reached the UK with street values of £40,000 per kilogram of cocaine, of £45,000 per kilogram of heroin and of £2,880 per kilogram of cannabis.
	In agreement with the Serious Organised Crime Agency these valuations have been applied retrospectively across the entire historical record; thus detailing estimated values of seizures as if they had reached UK streets in 2009. We have done this because there is no reliable record of street values year on year since 1997, particularly prior to the Agency's creation in 2006. Where only the number and not size of bales seized were recorded, we have not attempted to assign a street value.
	The successes of these counter narcotics operations are considerable and to ensure that a full and accurate picture is maintained in future, I have put in place revised record-keeping policies and established a more centralised reporting mechanism which will be updated where possible with US post-forensic results.
	I hope you will find this information useful.
	I am copying this letter to other MPs who have asked similar questions in the past.

Nuclear Weapons

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proposals the Government intend to make at the next NATO summit on  (a) nuclear sharing,  (b) nuclear first-strike and  (c) the reliance by NATO members on nuclear weapons as a guarantee for their security; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: The Declaration on Alliance Security that was agreed in April at the NATO summit in Strasbourg/Kehl makes clear that
	"Deterrence, based on an appropriate mix of nuclear and conventional capabilities, remains a core element of (the Alliance's) overall strategy".
	This provides the basis of discussions between Allies on a revised Strategic Concept for NATO, which is due to be agreed at next year's summit meeting. The UK will play a full part in these discussions.

Warships: Wrecks

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 18 March 2009,  Official Report, column 1141W, on HMS Victory, whether his Department plans to enter into a salvage agreement with Odyssey Marine Exploration.

Bill Rammell: The MOD has no current plans to enter into a salvage agreement with Odyssey Marine Exploration. Discussions on the future management of the wreck site continue with other Government Departments and English Heritage.

White Phosphorus

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Fife North East, on 1 June 2009,  Official Report, columns 48-49W, on white phosphorus, in which theatres of operation UK forces have used white phosphorus in the last 10 years; and whether his Department has taken steps to establish the long-term health effects of such usage on people exposed to the munitions.

Bob Ainsworth: In the last five years, white phosphorus munitions have been used by UK forces in both the Iraq and Afghanistan theatres of operation. Information covering the last 10 years is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	White phosphorus munitions are only used by UK forces to protect troops on operations by producing a smoke screen to provide cover in accordance with the Third Protocol of the UN Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the use of Certain Conventional Weapons, ratified by the UK in 1995, when it became illegal to use white phosphorus as a primary incendiary weapon under UK law. Training of UK forces in the use of white phosphorus emphasises that it should only be used for its intended purpose as an obscurant and not as an anti-personnel weapon. White phosphorus is always used in accordance with UK Rules of Engagement and UK forces will do their utmost to avoid civilian casualties, whatever weapons are being deployed.
	The Ministry of Defence has not carried out any work on possible long-term health effects resulting from exposure to white phosphorous.

TRANSPORT

Air Travel Organisers Licence

Julian Brazier: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will make an assessment of the merits of introducing a permanent increase in the level of the Air Travel Organisers Licence protection contribution.

Chris Mole: A written ministerial statement laid in the House on 16 July 2009 announced that the Secretary of State for Transport had approved the Civil Aviation Authority's (CAA) recommendation to increase the Air Travel Organisers Licence (ATOL) Protection Contribution (APC) to £2.50 per passenger, with effect from 1 October 2009. The CAA intend to review the level of the APC before the Air Travel Trust Fund deficit has been repaid, projected to be by the end of March 2012.

Automatic Train Protection

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what percentage of the high-speed passenger network operates with automatic train protection.

Chris Mole: Automatic Train Protection (ATP) is currently provided on part of the Great Western Mainline, on High Speed One, Heathrow Express and part of the Chiltern route out of Marylebone (although the last two routes are not high speed). The Department for Transport has published on its website the deployment plan for the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS), which includes ATP. The Department's ERTMS deployment plan can be found at:
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/adobepdf/165234/349552/ukertmsplan.pdf
	In the meantime, the Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS)-a form of intermittent ATP-has been installed where appropriate across the entire rail network, and has resulted in a 85 per cent. fall in risk from Signals Passed at Danger (SPADs).

Aviation

Julian Brazier: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether he plans to extend the scope of financial protection for air passengers.

Paul Clark: As set out in the consumer white paper 'A Better Deal for Consumers: Delivering Real Help Now and Change for the Future' published on 2 July 2009, the Department for Transport intends to consult on the reform of the Air Travel Organisers Licence (ATOL) scheme in the autumn, with the aim of providing greater clarity for consumers about which holidays are covered by ATOL. There are no plans to extend financial protection to all air passengers. The Government rejected this option in 2005 as disproportionate to the risks involved and this remains our position.

Bus Services

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many guided bus schemes have been introduced in each year since 2000.

Sadiq Khan: The following transport schemes which incorporate some element of guided busway have opened since 2000:
	2001: A64 York Road/A63 Selby Road section of Leeds Superbus project
	2002: Manchester Road Quality Bus Initiative in Bradford
	2003: Crawley Fastway

Bus Services: Concessions

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment he has made of the effect of the concessionary bus travel scheme on levels of bus usage by older people; and if he will make a statement.

Sadiq Khan: The table shows that the number of bus passenger journeys in England increased by 6.5 per cent. in the year following the introduction of free local concessionary fares in April 2006 and by 3.2 per cent. in the year following the introduction of the national concession in April 2008. However, these statistics count journeys made by all passengers, whether or not they are eligible for the free travel concession:
	
		
			  Bus passenger journeys: England, 2000-01 to 2008-09 
			   Local bus journeys (million)  Year-on-year percentage change 
			 2000-01 3,842 - 
			 2001-02 3,881 1.0 
			 2002-03 3,964 2.1 
			 2003-04 4,087 3.1 
			 2004-05 4,140 1.3 
			 2005-06 4,196 1.3 
			 2006-07 4,470 6.5 
			 2007-08 4,530 1.3 
			 2008-09 (provisional) 4,674 3.2 
			  Source: Bus and Light Rail Statistics: Q1 2009 
		
	
	The Department for Transport has commissioned research from the Institute of Transport Studies (ITS), which will consider the impact of the national and local concessionary travel schemes on overall usage of bus services. The research is due to be published early next year.

Bus Services: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to page 92 of Building Britain's Future, Cm 7654, for how many years his Department plans to allocate £2.5 billion a year in support of bus services.

Sadiq Khan: Based on current assumptions and projections central and local government support for bus services is expected to be around £2.5 billion this year and over the next two financial years. Decisions on funding for bus services from the years from 2012-13 will be made when departmental budgets are allocated as part of normal Government-wide processes.

Car Clubs: Environment Protection

Colin Challen: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what his most recent assessment is of the environmental benefits of car clubs.

Sadiq Khan: The Department for Transport endorses car clubs and sponsors Carplus, an organisation which promotes car clubs nationally.
	Carplus publish an annual survey produced in conjunction with the Transport Research Laboratory which shows the environmental benefits of car clubs. The most recent, for 2008-09, was published in April this year. This can be found on their website at:
	www.carplus.org.uk

Car Clubs: Greater London

Colin Challen: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what his policy is on the expansion of the car clubs infrastructure in London as promoted by Transport for London; and if he will make a statement.

Sadiq Khan: The Department for Transport believes that car clubs have an important role to play where they are likely to be well used, such as London.
	It is, however, a matter for Transport for London to make a statement specifically about the car clubs infrastructure in London.

Cycling: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to page 92 of Building Britain's Future, Cm 7654, for how many years his Department plans to make £60 million per annum available for cycling.

Sadiq Khan: Cycling England's current three-year budget of £140 million is allocated as follows:
	£20 million in 2008-09;
	£60 million in 2009-10; and
	£60 million in 2010-11.
	Decisions on funding for cycling for the years from 2011-12 will be made when the Department for Transport's overall budget is allocated as part of normal Government-wide processes.

Cycling: Hampshire

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much his Department allocated for cycle safety training in  (a) Test Valley borough and  (b) Southampton for each of the last five years.

Sadiq Khan: We have provided grants for National Standard/Bikeability cycle training to a number of local highway authorities in Hampshire since 2008-09. All bids were met in full. No bids for grant from Hampshire authorities were received prior to the 2008-09 bidding round. Details of the grants awarded are set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Local authority cycle training grants 
			  £ 
			   2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			 Southampton city council - - - 120,000.00 
			 Hampshire county council - - 100,000.00 200,000.00 
			 Portsmouth city council - - - 91,400.00 
		
	
	In addition to the above funding the Wavell School in Hampshire (Farnborough) received a School Sports Partnership cycle training grant from the Department of £12,000.00 in 2006-07.

Cycling: Lancashire

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much funding his Department has allocated to encourage bicycle usage in Morecambe and Lunesdale in each of the last three years.

Sadiq Khan: Lancaster with Morecambe is one of the Department for Transport's cycle demonstration towns. We provided funding of £1,311,775.00 for the period 2005-08. We have extended their funding for 2009-11 as set out in the table:
	
		
			  Lancaster with Morecambe  £ 
			 2005-08 (1 November 2005-31 March 2008) 1,311,775 
			 2008-09 500,000 
			 2009-10 500,000 
			 2010-11 500,000 
			 Total 2,809,200 
		
	
	In addition we funded a cycle training grant bid in full from Lancaster city council for the cycle demonstration town area of £15,000.00 for 2009-10.

Departmental Billing

John Mason: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what percentage of invoices from suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in June 2009.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport has paid 82.82 per cent. of valid invoices received in June 2009 within 10 days measured against the total number of 18,490 valid invoices received.

Departmental Carbon Emissions

James Paice: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the volume of carbon dioxide emissions arising from air travel by staff in his Department in  (a) 2006-07 and  (b) 2007-08 (i) in total and (ii) per full-time equivalent member of staff.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport can estimate the carbon emissions arising from air transport for the central Department and four of its agencies (DVLA, DSA, HA, VCA) for 2006-07 and 2007-08. These amount to 1,015.1 tonnes of CO2 in 2006-07 and 999.4 tonnes in 2007-08. This equates to 0.071 tonnes per FTE member of staff in 2006-07 and 0.070 in 2007-08.
	In addition the Department can report 2007-08 figures for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency of 245.8 tonnes of CO2 and an aggregate figure across the five agencies of 0.081 tonnes per FTE member of staff.
	The Department anticipates being able to report estimates for all agencies from 2008-09.

Departmental Contracts

Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many contracts let by his Department were awarded to businesses with fewer than 50 employees in each of the last five years; and what the monetary value of such contracts was in each such year.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport does not hold the information centrally and it could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, where the information is available, it has been set out in the following table.
	
		
			   2005  2006  2007  2008  2009( 1)  Total 
			  Department for Transport Central   
			 Number of contracts 33 20 11 9 1 74 
			 Estimated value (£) 3,997,619 5,737,100 1,326,748 4,048,384 80,000 15,189,851 
			
			  Vehicle and Operator Services Agency   
			 Number of contracts 71 58 61 55 6 251 
			 Estimated value (£) 6,720,251 4,227,811 3,712,081 2,528,622 197,450 17,386,215 
			  Driving Standards Agency   
			 Number of contracts 3 9 6 7 7 32 
			 Estimated value (£) 268,053 750,582 871,101 256,733 13,107,709 15,254,178 
			
			  Vehicle Certification Agency   
			 Number of contracts 1 0 0 0 0 1 
			 Estimated value (£) 388,330 0 0 0 0 388,330 
			
			  Total   
			 Number of contracts 108 87 78 71 14 358 
			 Estimated value (£) 11,374,253 10,715,493 15,909,930 6,833,739 13,385,159 58,218,574 
			 (1) To June 2009.  Notes: 1. The table contains the information that is available centrally for contracts that were formally tendered or contracts that were let as a call-off or mini-competition under a framework agreement within the main procurement units. It largely excludes local or low value procurement activity or purchases, and information that is not held centrally. 2. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, the Government Car and Despatch Agency and the Maritime and Coast Guard Agency do not keep records centrally and the information would be available only at disproportionate costs. 3. The Highways Agency (HA) keeps records indicating which of its suppliers are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), but it does not record which of these are small enterprises of fewer than 50 employees.

Departmental Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 18 June 2009,  Official Report, column 427W, on carbon sequestration: finance, how much was available in total in accumulated underspends from prior years as at 28 June 2009; and by how much his Department underspent on each project in each of the last five years.

Chris Mole: "Public Expenditure 2008-09: Provisional Outturn" (Cm 7606) sets out the Department for Transport's End Year Flexibility (EYF) entitlements resulting from underspends in 2008-09 and previous years. These are shown in the following table:
	
		
			   £ 000 
			  Resource:  
			 Admin 66,896 
			 Programme 572,841 
			  Total Resource: 640,737 
			 Of which near cash 262,704 
			 Capital 148,378 
		
	
	Budget allocations are generally made at a programme level, rather than to individual projects, allowing managers to offset and balance the normal increases and reductions in spending in-year on those individual projects. Similarly, programme level budgets may be adjusted during the year to reflect emerging opportunities and pressures. This means that it is not possible to produce a project-by-project breakdown of annual underspends.

Departmental Manpower

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many  (a) external contractors and  (b) other non-departmental staff were employed by his Department in London in each of the last five financial years; and at what cost such staff were employed in each such year.

Chris Mole: The number of  (a) external contractors and  (b) other non-departmental staff employed by the Department for Transport in London in each of the last five financial years is set out in table. The cost of employing these staff in each year could be provided only at disproportionate cost:
	
		
			   External contractors  Other non-departmental staff( 1) 
			 2004-05 61 106 
			 2005-06 137 162 
			 2006-07 123 215 
			 2007-08 154 218 
			 2008-09 107 240 
			 (1 )Consultants, agency staff, non-civil servants, and fee paid staff 
		
	
	The figures exclude  (a) the Government Car and Despatch Agency who could collect the data only at disproportionate cost and  (b) other non-departmental staff employed by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, which that agency was not able to provide.

Departmental Manpower

Jo Swinson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what percentage of employees in his Department are  (a) women and  (b) men; and what the average hourly pay is of (i) male and (ii) female employees.

Chris Mole: The latest available published figures showing the percentage of male and female employees in the Department for Transport with their associated median salaries are contained in the Annual Civil Service Employment Survey statistics published by the Office for National Statistics (Annex A). It is not possible to determine an hourly rate on these salaries because the conditioned hours of staff may vary due to work location.

Departmental Pay

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what the  (a) mean and  (b) median consolidated salary of full-time equivalent civil servants working in (i) his Department and (ii) its agencies outside London is.

Chris Mole: The mean consolidated salary of full-time equivalent civil servants working in the Department for Transport outside of London is £23,287. The mean consolidated salary of full-time equivalent civil servants working in the Department for Transport agencies outside of London is £22,982.
	The median consolidated salary of full-time equivalent civil servants working in the Department for Transport outside of London is £19,953. The median consolidated salary of full-time equivalent civil servants working in the Department for Transport agencies outside of London is £19,953.

Departmental Procurement

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what changes have been made to his Department's  (a) office equipment and  (b) stationery purchasing policy in the last six months.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport has not made any changes to its purchasing policy in relation to  (a) office equipment and  (b) stationery in the past six months. Existing policies aim to deliver value for money using collaborative procurement deals where available.

Departmental Public Appointments

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport to which organisations the Secretary of State makes appointments.

Chris Mole: Ministers for the Department for Transport make appointments to a range of organisations including non-departmental public bodies, such as the Commission for Integrated Transport, public corporations such as the Civil Aviation Authority and trust ports such as Dover.
	Ministers also make appointments to the British Transport Police Authority, Cycling England, Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee, Northern Lighthouse Board, Office of Rail Regulation, Passenger Focus, Railway Heritage Committee, and the Renewable Fuels Agency. The Secretary of State for Transport has powers to appoint some board members to other trust ports in England and Wales the most significant of which are London, Tyne, Harwich and Milford Haven.
	A fully comprehensive list is not held centrally in the Department and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Travel

Simon Hughes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much his Department has spent on  (a) ministerial cars and drivers,  (b) taxis,  (c) train travel,  (d) the use of helicopters,  (e) airline tickets and  (f) chartered aeroplanes in each year since 1997.

Chris Mole: The Government Car and Despatch Agency is responsible for providing ministerial cars and drivers. Information for years 2000-01 to 2002-03 is as follows:
	
		
			   2000-01  2001-02  Post general election 2001  2002-03 
			   Number of cars  Annual contracted value (£)  Number of cars  Annual contracted value (£)  Number of cars  Annual contracted value (£)  Number of cars  Annual contracted value (£) 
			 Cabinet Office(1) 12 722,200 13 813,000 13 816,700 8 440,800 
			 ODPM(2) - - - - - - 6 333,600 
			 DCMS 4 214,800 4 222,000 4 222,400 4 230,500 
			 DETR(3) 8 402,700 9 464,200 - - - - 
			 DfEE/DfES(2) 8 400,000 8 412,600 7 351,200 6 317,000 
			 DRD 2 94,500 2 96,800 1 50,000 2 92200 
			 DSS(3) 5 246,100 5 253,400 - - - - 
			 DTI 5 289,000 6 313,900 6 313,900 6 321,700 
			 FCO 5 256,500 5 263,800 6 315,800 5 258,000 
			 Department of Health 5 307,200 6 316,600 7 369,500 6 325,500 
			 HM Treasury 5 263,900 5 271,200 5 271,500 5 285,800 
			 Home Office 5 243,000 4 208,800 6 332,400 7 399,900 
			 Lord Chancellor's Department 5 165,800 3 170,400 4 223,600 4 233,200 
			 MAFF(3) 5 210,700 4 218,200 - - - - 
			 MOD(4) 5 53,000 1 54,500 1 54,500 1 63,000 
			 Northern Ireland Office 5 239,800 3 247,300 3 247,300 5 257,500 
			 Privy Council Office 5 170,900 2 113,800 2 113,800 2 120,800 
			 Scotland Office 5 96,500 2 100,800 2 98,400 2 100,400 
			 Wales Office 5 121,100 2 122,900 2 122,900 2 127^00 
			 DEFRA(3) - - - - 5 268,000 5 285,900 
			 DTLR/DfT(2,3) - - - - 7 373,500 3 173,700 
			 DWP(3) - - - - 6 315,900 6 328,600 
			 Total 99 4,497,700 84 4,664,200 87 4,861,300 85 4,695,300 
			 (1) Cabinet Office figures include cars for the Prime Minister's Office, the Leader of the House of Lords, the Chief Whips in both Chambers and the Minister without Portfolio. (2) Takes into account Machinery of Government changes. (3) DETR, DSS and MAFF were reorganised after the 2001 general election. (4) The Government Car Service provides a car and driver for the Secretary of State for Defence only. MOD provides its other Ministers with transport. 
		
	
	Information for 2003-04 is as follows:
	
		
			   2003-04 
			  Department  Number of cars  Annual contracted value (£) 
			 Cabinet Office 9 552,200 
			 DCA 3 188,200 
			 DCMS 4 235,600 
			 DEFRA 5 281,400 
			 DfES 7 382,100 
			 DFID 3 147,300 
			 DfT 4 232,200 
			 DTI 5 275,500 
			 DWP 6 339,400 
			 FCO 4 214,500 
			 DH 6 422,300 
			 HMT 5 292,200 
			 Home Office 7 408,900 
			 Law Officers 2 106,400 
			 NIO 5 362,600 
			 ODPM 7 394,300 
			 Privy Council 1 56,000 
			 Scotland Office 1 49,200 
			 Wales Office 3 140,700 
			 Total 87 5,081,000 
			  Notes: 1. Cabinet Office figures prior to the Machinery of Government changes include cars for the Prime Minister's Office, the Leader of the House of Lords, the Chief Whips in both Chambers and the Minister without Portfolio. After the changes the figures exclude the Government Chief Whip for the House of Lords. 2. The Lord Chancellor's Department (LCD) became the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) following Machinery of Government changes in June 2003. 3. The Government Car Service no longer provided services to the Ministry of Defence. 
		
	
	Information for 2004-05 is as follows:
	
		
			   2004-05 
			  Department  Number of cars  Annual contracted value (£) 
			 Cabinet Office(1) 8 487,400 
			 ODPM 6 366,800 
			 DCMS 4 255,000 
			 DfES 7 399,200 
			 DFID 2 119,800 
			 DTI 5 286,300 
			 FCO 4 231,700 
			 Department of Health 6 382,200 
			 HM Treasury 5 303,300 
			 Home Office 7 386,900 
			 DCA 4 248,300 
			 Law Officers 2 113,100 
			 MOD(2) 0 0 
			 Northern Ireland Office 5 373,700 
			 Privy Council Office 3 195,400 
			 Scotland Office(3,4) 1 56,700 
			 Wales Office(3) 1 66,400 
			 DEFRA 5 294,700 
			 DfT 4 239,200 
			 DWP 6 357,500 
			 Total 85 5,163,600 
			 (1) Cabinet Office figures include cars for the Prime Minister's Office, the Leader of the House of Lords, the Chief Whips in both Chambers and the Minister without Portfolio. (2) No Government Car Service (GCS) cars or drivers were provided to the Ministry of Defence during 2003-04 or 2004-05. (3) The right hon. Alistair Darling MP was both Secretary of State for Transport and Secretary of State for Scotland. All his GCS costs were met by the Department for Transport. The right hon. Peter Hain MP was both Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and Secretary of State for Wales. All his GCS costs were met by the Northern Ireland Office. (4) The GCS car and driver provided to the Scotland Office was shared by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, David Cairns MP, and the Advocate-General, Dr. Lynda Clark QC. 
		
	
	Information on costs for ministerial cars and drivers for 2005-06 and 2006-07 was published in a written ministerial statement on 26 July 2007,  Official Report, columns 109-11WS; for 2007-08 in a written ministerial statement on 22 July 2008,  Official Report, columns 116-18WS; and for 2008-09 in a written ministerial statement on 16 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 79-80WS.
	Information for earlier years is not readily available and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost.
	Additional information to answer parts  (b) to  (f) could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Driving: Licensing

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many people successfully applied for a provisional driving licence for motorcycles only in each year since 1997.

Paul Clark: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The information requested is not held. Provisional driving licences are not issued with motorcycle entitlement only. Since 1 February 2002, all provisional licences automatically include motorcycle entitlement. Prior to this date, drivers who wanted provisional motorcycle entitlement had to request that it was included on their licence; it was then limited to two years.

Driving: Training

Greg Knight: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much his Department has spent providing training courses on road safety offered to drivers who would otherwise be fined for speeding; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Clark: The Department for Transport is not responsible for the funding of courses offered to drivers as an alternative to a fixed penalty for a speeding offence. Speed awareness courses are run by the police and designed to be self-funding with the client fee covering the costs involved.

East Coast Railway Line

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 93W, on the east Coast Railway Line, what information his Department holds on the operating surplus made by Intercity services in each of the last 10 years during which British Rail operated those services; if he will commission research to establish the proportion of that surplus which was attributable to the Intercity services run on the East Coast Main Line; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Mole: Further to my answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 94W, the Department for Transport does not hold this information.

East Coast Railway Line

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 93W, on East Coast Railway line, if he will set a target for the surplus of income over operating costs to be met in relation to services on the East Coast Main Line during the period that those services are in public sector management; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport will be considering ways of incentivising the East Coast Main Line company to operate efficiently.

East Coast Railway Line

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when his Department plans to begin the pre-qualification process for invitations to tender for the Inter-City East Coast franchise.

Chris Mole: In the event that a state company takes on responsibility for the inter-city east coast services later this year, the Department for Transport will consult on a new franchise specification with a view to issuing an invitation to tender in the summer of 2010.

East Coast Railway Line

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment he has made of the effect of proposed public ownership of East Coast Main Line services on open access operators on this route.

Chris Mole: The operation of the East Coast Main Line franchise under public ownership should have no impact on open access operators on the route.
	While the East Coast Main Line franchise is under public ownership, it will abide by the same industry schemes, mechanisms and regulatory regimes as are currently applicable under the National Express operated franchise. These same regimes are generally applicable to open access operators.

East Coast Railway Line: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether funds have been allocated from  (a) the current rail budget for Control Period 4 and (ii) other transport budgets in respect of the cost of (i) the public company set up to run services on the East Coast Main Line and (ii) re-letting the Inter-City East Coast franchise.

Chris Mole: The Government will seek to recover the costs of setting up the public company to run services on the East Coast Main Line and the costs of re-letting the Inter-City East Coast Franchise from the performance bond in the National Express East Coast franchise, and as such, no funds have currently been allocated from the Control Period 4 rail budget or other transport budgets.

East Coast Railway Line: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate his Department has made of the annual cost to the public purse of running National Express East Coast rail services under  (a) a management contract with a private operator and  (b) a Government-owned company set up by his Department.

Chris Mole: Due to timescale and procurement issues, the Government concluded that running services on the east coast main line under a management contract with a private sector operator was not a practical option. Work is in hand on developing a costed business plan for the publically owned company that has been created by the Department for Transport to take over the operation of services on the east coast main line as and when National Express East Coast cease to operate those services.

Eurostar

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 26 June 2009,  Official Report, column 1162W, on high speed trains, if he will make it his policy to sell Eurostar UK by competitive auction.

Chris Mole: Negotiations are well under way with our international partners to facilitate the development of the Eurostar partnership by merging the UK, French and Belgian operations into a single incorporated UK-based company.
	The aim is to create a Eurostar that is financially stable, can develop its services for the benefit of passengers, can meet the challenge of competition for international rail passengers from 2010, and is free from future Government support.
	The Government will retain the ability to sell their shareholding in the new business by competitive auction at a future date.

Eurostar

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 25 June 2009, on Eurostar, by what means his Department intends to demonstrate value for money for the taxpayer by negotiating the incorporation of Eurostar UK into a single company in which the Government have a minority stake; what expressions of interest in Eurostar UK have been received; what assessment he has made of the likely effects on the provision of new services to Amsterdam and Cologne of the establishment of a single Eurostar company; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Mole: Deutsche Bahn indicated to the Government their general interest in Eurostar UK Ltd. (EUKL), but this did not result in a formal offer for the company.
	The assessment of value has been based on a comparison between endeavouring to sell EUKL as an undertaking separate to its current successful partnership, and the benefits of an incorporation deal.
	The Government believe that a sale of EUKL as a separate entity would be of uncertain value and considerable risk. In contrast incorporation offers an opportunity to shape the provision of Eurostar's cross-Channel rail services to the benefit of passengers, while creating a tradable shareholding in a future business that is more stable and certain than EUKL on its own.
	Separately the Government remain keen to encourage competition on cross-Channel rail passenger routes to the benefit of the High Speed 1 business. We aim to sell a concession for High Speed 1 as soon as market conditions allow and the concessionaire will be incentivised to promote competition on the line-to Paris, Brussels and beyond. The newly incorporated Eurostar will be in a position to compete with any future competitors on a fair and equal basis.

Fisheries: Accidents

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what steps have been taken since 2000 to reduce the numbers of  (a) fishermen and  (b) other persons killed at sea.

Paul Clark: Since 2000 the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), the Department for Transport and the Seafish Industry Authority, working in partnership, have:
	Introduced Codes of Safety for Fishing Vessels of 15m to 24m in length, and under 15m in length;
	Published 25 Merchant Shipping Notices (MSN) and Marine Guidance Notes (MGN) exclusively for the fishing industry, and 92 MSNs and MGNs intended for both merchant and fishing fleets;
	Introduced a system of Risk Assessment for fishing vessels, so that skippers and fishermen can review their own operations and develop effective solutions to the risks faced;
	Introduced Small Fishing Vessel Safety Guidance booklet to assist in their Risk Assessment process;
	Ensuring a robust regime for all Fishing Vessels undergoing their renewal surveys and mid-term safety inspections by MCA surveyors;
	Introduced a Prepare yourself for Survey booklet to assist fishermen in preparing their vessel for survey and for ongoing assessment of its condition by them;
	Introduced a programme of inspection of small Fishing Vessels by local Coastguard Officers, who are able to deploy their local knowledge and the high regard in which the CG is held, to improve relations with local fishermen;
	Further developed this programme of inspection with the use of surveyors on larger under 15m vessels and introduced, initially as a trial and now expected to be formalised dedicated inspection teams whereby trained inspectors can use higher technical skills and local knowledge to enhance safety of vessels and safety culture of fishermen;
	Opened new Fishing Vessel Survey Offices in Brixham and Newlyn so that surveyors can be close at hand to large concentrations of Fishing Vessels;
	Employed a skipper to conduct on board visits to vessels in Scotland to discuss safety with the crews;
	Seafish has developed new standards for the hull construction and equipment of new Fishing Vessels under 24m;
	New vessels are unable to Register as Fishing Vessels unless they are being built, surveyed and certificated to the Seafish Construction Standards. Vessels built prior to 2001 must also be surveyed by Seafish against the standards who then provide a report to MCA who then decide on the basis of this report whether the vessel can be registered;
	Enhanced the mandatory training requirements for basic safety training in Sea Survival, Fire Fighting, First Aid, Health and Safety for all fishermen, focused in particular to ensure that young entrants to the industry receive sufficient basic safety training and experienced fishermen receive Safety Awareness training;
	Developed new courses for skippers of smaller vessels in Navigation and Engine Room Watchkeeping and Stability Awareness, which lead to a Skippers Certificate;
	Obtained grants from the EU Financial Instrument for Fisheries to allow the free provision of basic safety training in Sea Survival, Fire Fighting, First Aid, Health and Safety and Safety Awareness from 2001 to 2007;
	Is providing funds from Seafish and DFT to provide free training in the Navigation and Engine Room Watchkeeping and Stability Awareness (between July 2008 and March 2009 the funding provided was £536,271); and
	Conducted numerous safety campaigns with fishermen.
	Further details of safety initiatives affecting other seafarers can be found in Annual Report and Accounts of the MCA submitted to Parliament each year and placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer Adjournment.

Sadiq Khan: At present, I have no plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer Adjournment. However, my plans for visits have not been finalised yet.

Great North Eastern Railway: Connex

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many members of staff within  (a) his Department and  (b) the Strategic Rail Authority were assigned to duties related to ensuring the continuity of rail services following the surrender of franchises by (i) GNER and (ii) Connex.

Chris Mole: Although the GNER franchise was not surrendered, but converted into a management contract, there were three people employed by the Department for Transport who led on this process. However, others in the Department, including specialists in the finance and legal teams, would have contributed to the work.
	The Department does not hold information in relation to the number of staff within the Strategic Rail Authority who worked on ensuring the continuity of rail services when the Connex franchise was surrendered. The Strategic Rail Authority would have been solely responsible for this.

Helicopters: Safety

Frank Doran: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment the Civil Aviation Authority has made of the safety implications of the wearing of wrist watch personal location beacons by passengers on helicopters serving the North Sea oil and gas industry  (a) during the initial proof and concept trials carried out by British Petroleum and  (b) after those trials.

Paul Clark: The Civil Aviation Authority did not make a specific assessment of the safety implications of wearing wrist watch personal locator beacons. This is because such beacons are not part of an aircraft's approved equipment and are treated in the same way as any other personal portable electronic device, such as mobile telephones, which have been the subject of a safety assessment. Operators remain responsible for ensuring that passengers are aware of and comply with the restrictions on their use.

Helicopters: Safety

Frank Doran: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when the Civil Aviation Authority received reports on the potential effects on helicopter communications systems of the use of wrist watch personal locator beacons by passengers on helicopters serving the North Sea oil and gas industry; and what steps the authority took in response to those reports.

Paul Clark: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) started to receive occasional reports concerning interference with frequency 121.5 Mhz, the international civil distress frequency, in 2003. Reports were also received regarding breakthrough on frequencies adjacent to 121.5 Mhz.
	In January 2009 the CAA held a meeting with helicopter operators and other stakeholders to discuss the concerns about the potential effects of inadvertent transmissions. These include radio interference on the emergency frequency, interference with aircraft systems, interference with other beacons, and the generation of false alarms. As a result the CAA established a working group to examine the issues in depth, and work by this group continues.

Highways Agency

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to page 73 of Building Britain's Future, Cm 7654, what estimate he has made of the savings to be made from new efficiencies in the Highways Agency in 2010-11.

Chris Mole: The Highways Agency's 2007 comprehensive spending review settlement covering the financial years 2008-09 to 2010-11 includes a target to deliver value for money gains of £144 million by the end of that period. As announced in the November 2008 pre-Budget report, the Highways Agency is also committed to working to identify a further £150 million efficiency savings by 31 March 2011.

Inter-City East Coast Franchise: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what the cost to the public purse was of letting the Inter-City East Coast franchise to  (a) GNER in 2005 and  (b) National Express East Coast in 2007.

Chris Mole: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 16 July 2009,  Official Report, column 619W.

Lighting: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much funding his Department has made available to local authorities through private finance initiative credits for signed street lighting contracts in each year since 2000.

Sadiq Khan: The following table shows the amount of PFI credits allocated to local authority street lighting PFI projects in the financial year that each contract was signed:
	
		
			  Financial year  PFI credits allocated (million) 
			 2001-02 18.6 
			 2002-03 0 
			 2003-04 166.8 
			 2004-05 0 
			 2005-06 101.8 
			 2006-07 149.9 
			 2007-08 94.9 
			 2008-09 0 
		
	
	A Highway Maintenance PFI contract signed in Portsmouth in 2003 and worth £121 million PFI credits also includes the local authority's entire street lighting stock. This is not included in the above table.

Lorries: Roads

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport which strategic routes have dedicated heavy goods vehicle lanes.

Chris Mole: There are no dedicated heavy goods vehicle (HGV) lanes on the Highways Agency's strategic road network. However, crawler or climbing lanes for slower vehicles, such as HGVs, are in operation on many parts of the network, including:
	M4 Eastbound Junctions 19-18
	M5 Northbound Junctions 20-19
	M5 Northbound Junctions 18-17
	M5 Southbound Junctions 19-20
	M27 North and Southbound Junctions 11-12
	M3 Northbound Junctions 9-8
	M62 Westbound Junctions 25-24
	A1(M) Northbound Junctions 60-61
	A1 (M) Southbound Junctions 61-63

M25

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much of the budget allocated to the M25 private finance initiative project has not been spent to date.

Chris Mole: The M25 Design Build Finance and Operate (DBFO) contract awarded by the Highways Agency in May 2009 is worth a total of £6.2 billion. These costs will be incurred over the 30-year lifetime of the project.
	During contract negotiations, the Government expressed a willingness to co-fund if necessary a proportion of the capital spending by the project consortium. In the event, no co-funding was necessary as all of the required funds were raised by the private sector.

Motor Vehicles: Exhaust Emissions

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to page 85 of Building Britain's Future, Cm 7654, what incentives his Department plans to put in place to increase take-up of low-carbon vehicles.

Sadiq Khan: On 1 July, the Secretary of State for Transport announced a new £30 million Green Bus Fund from which bus companies and local authorities in England can compete over the next two years for funds to help them buy new low carbon buses.
	In addition, changes to Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) have been announced whereby, from 1 April 2009, an additional 6p per kilometre will be payable for all eligible kilometres operated by low carbon emission buses in England.
	All of this is in addition to our plans for electric vehicles and vans.

Motorways: Exhaust Emissions

Simon Hughes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent assessment he has made of the costs of  (a) congestion and (b) pollution resulting from traffic on English motorways; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Mole: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Department for Transport uses valuations to assess changes, either to the costs of congestion over time, or for particular interventions. Valuations are therefore in terms of comparisons with a base year or with regard to a scenario without a scheme or proposal.
	The Eddington study, published in 2006, made use of analysis from the Department's National Transport Model. This looked at the costs of additional road congestion as it is predicted to increase over time, rather than the absolute costs of congestion. It estimated that the increase in time lost in England due to road congestion between 2003 and 2025 for all travellers including business and freight would be worth £23 to £24 billion by 2025 in 2002 prices.
	Because the impacts of pollution are often locally specific, an assessment of pollution resulting from the whole motorway network would be very complex and so is not undertaken. When individual proposals are assessed, detailed analysis is undertaken.
	With regard to CO2 produced in the motorway network, changes to CO2 emissions over time, and as a result of schemes are produced as set out in the Department's Road Transport Forecasts 2008, and the Active Traffic Management study. Some of this evidence will include valuations of the CO2 changes.

National Express: East Coast Railway Line

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will place in the Library a copy of each report on the due diligence process carried out by his Department on the financial viability of the east coast bid in the course of the franchising process.

Chris Mole: The National Express pre-qualification application was compliant in accordance with Treasury procurement guidelines. National Express Group committed, as part of its bid, a £40 million loan facility that was sufficient to maintain its contractual liquidity requirements, given its bid revenue projections, over the franchise term. Its bid was considered affordable.

National Express: East Coast Railway Line

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether his Department has engaged consultants to advise on the status of the cross-default clauses in the National Express east coast franchise.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport is taking extensive legal advice on the status of the cross-default clauses in the National Express east coast franchise.

Parking

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what regulatory provisions apply to the operation of public car parks operated by private companies.

Sadiq Khan: The management of privately-owned car parks must be carried out in accordance with the general legislation applying to businesses, including consumer legislation and employment legislation.

Passenger Ships

Greg Knight: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether alcohol will be allowed to be served in designated smoking cabins when the forthcoming smoking bans on cruise ships and passenger ferries come into force.

Paul Clark: Legislation on when and where alcohol may be served on cruise ships and passenger ferries will not be affected by the draft "Merchant Shipping (Prohibition of Smoking on Ships) Regulations" which are currently the subject of a public consultation exercise.

Passenger Ships

Greg Knight: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment he has made of the adequacy of resources available to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency to enable enforcement of the proposed prohibition on smoking on ships and ferries.

Paul Clark: The deployment of Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) resources is considered as part of the regular discussions between the Agency and the Department for Transport on all aspects on MCA business.

Public Expenditure

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much of his Department's budget is linked to objectives of promoting health and well-being.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport's annual report and accounts for 2008-09, published on 16 July 2009, sets out the Department's budgets by Departmental Strategic Objective (DSO) (annex A, table A2 page 218). Spend on promoting health and well-being is predominantly included within DSO 3 ("contribute to better safety, security and health") and DSO 5 ("improve quality of life and to promote a healthy natural environment").

Public Expenditure

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much he plans to allocate to each of the schemes referred to in "Building Britain's Future", Cm 7654, which are not directly related to transport.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport has provided £350 million towards the £1.5 billion additional investment over the next two years to deliver 20,000 additional energy efficient, affordable homes to rent or buy. It is not contributing to any other schemes referred to in "Building Britain's Future" that are not directly related to transport.

Railways

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport on what percentage of rail routes slam-door carriages have been removed since 2000.

Chris Mole: The withdrawal from all routes of Mark 1 design slam-door carriages, which were the subject of the 10-Year Plan for Transport, was completed in November 2005, apart from two units on the Lymington Branch which will be retired shortly.
	Other slam-door designs, such as Mark 2s and 3s, remain in service but these were not the subject of the 10-Year Plan for Transport as they are fitted with central door locking, which prevents the doors from being opened while the train is in motion.

Railways: Electrification

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 23 June 2009,  Official Report, column 769W, on rail: electrification, when Transport for London indicated to his Department that there was little likelihood of it funding and bearing the risks of the electrification scheme.

Chris Mole: Transport for London (TfL) wrote to the Department for Transport on 18 March 2009 to indicate that it does not wish to provide the funding to meet the balance of the Gospel Oak to Barking electrification scheme costs over and above the offer by the Secretary of State for Transport to TfL of a contribution of a capital sum of up to £25 million.

Railways: Electrification

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answers of 23 June 2009,  Official Report, column 769W and 6 July 2009,  Official Report, column 539W, on rail: electrification, whether the offer made in January 2009 remains open.

Chris Mole: The offer was conditional on Transport for London taking forward the project, including working up a business case, finding the balance of the cost and bearing all risks. Transport for London wrote to us on 18 March 2009 to advise us that it was not willing to take the project forward on this basis.

Railways: Electrification

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to page 11 of "Building Britain's Future", Cm 7654, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of electrification per mile of railway line on the  (a) Midland main line and  (b) Great Western line.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport has been carrying out detailed work on electrification and expects to make an announcement, including details of costs, shortly.

Railways: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what contingency measures he has in place to address any potential shortfall in his Department's budget as a result of rail franchise defaults in rail Control Period Four, 2009-14.

Chris Mole: If the Government are required to take rail franchises into the public sector on a temporary basis, they will ensure that sufficient funds are available to secure the continuation of rail services should the revenue from the fare box not be sufficient to meet the running costs. The transaction costs incurred in transferring franchises to the public sector in such circumstances are usually met from the franchise's performance bond.

Railways: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much of the rail budget for Control Period 4 is unallocated and available.

Chris Mole: The Government set out the funds they have allocated to specific rail programmes in the White Paper "Delivering a Sustainable Railway" which was published in July 2007. Funding for any other programmes or projects that are not contained in that White Paper will be made available as necessary.

Railways: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport for which smaller rail schemes funding in Control Period 4 is available.

Chris Mole: The Government set out their strategy for Control Period 4 (CP4) in their White Paper, "Delivering a Sustainable Railway", which was published in July 2007. The rail schemes that are being delivered under that strategy are set out in the Office of Rail Regulation's determination of Network Rail's income for CP4. This is available on the Office of Rail Regulation's website at:
	www.rail-reg.gov.uk

Railways: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to page 52 of "Building Britain's Future", Cm 7654 and the written ministerial statement,  Official Report, columns 21-22WS, on franchise rail services, how much has been allocated to programmes related to  (a) Reading Station,  (b) Thameslink,  (c) Birmingham New Street and  (d) Kings Cross rail schemes during Control Period 4.

Chris Mole: Work on enhancement projects during Control Period 4 is undertaken by Network Rail in accordance with the ORR Determination.
	In their determination relating to enhancements for control Period 4, ORR specified the four projects for which information is requested without allocating specific values to each project. ORR stated in its determination that:
	"Although we have estimated the costs of delivering individual projects when determining how much revenue Network Rail needs in total, Network Rail is free to budget for individual schemes as it sees fit."

Railways: Finance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the evidence submitted by his Department to the Transport Select Committee's inquiry into "Delivering a Sustainable railway: a 30-year strategy for the railways", HC 219 (2007-08), how much his Department plans to spend in Control Period 4  (a) on improvements to medium-sized stations,  (b) to facilitate strategic freight network infrastructure,  (c) on the Network Rail Discretionary Fund and  (d) on the delivery of 1,300 extra carriages.

Chris Mole: These projects are to be financed and delivered by Network Rail and the Rolling Stock Leasing Companies. The Government have set out the funding of over £10 billion that it intends to make available for the Railway during Control Period 4 in its White Paper, "Delivering a Sustainable Railway".

Railways: Franchises

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 17 June 2009,  Official Report, column 294W, on railways: franchises, how much revenue support is available to each train operating company in each year of its franchise.

Chris Mole: The amount of revenue support that is payable to franchised rail operators is determined by the contracts that those operators have with the Government. The Department for Transport makes internal forecasts for amounts payable under the revenue sharing provisions and funding is available to ensure that it can honour its obligations under those contracts.

Railways: Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what percentage of the rail network has had the train protection and warning system installed.

Chris Mole: 100 per cent. of the train protection and warning system has been installed across the entire rail network as required by the Railway Safety Regulations 1999 and as set out by the Government's 10-Year Plan for Transport.
	This programme of work has resulted in a 85 per cent. fall in risk from signals passed at danger.

Railways: South East

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 16 June 2009,  Official Report, column 178W, on railways: South East, what his most recent estimate is of the additional costs likely to be incurred during the mobilisation phase of the project; how much his Department has allocated for expenditure on those additional costs; and when he expects to be able to make a final estimate of those additional costs.

Chris Mole: The total cost of the mobilisation phase of the South Central franchise project is not yet known, given that this phase only commenced on 8 June 2009 and runs until the franchise commences on 20 September 2009. The estimated external costs for this phase of the project are £180,000.

Roads: Accidents

David Crausby: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of road accidents involving  (a) cyclists,  (b) pedestrians and  (c) motorcyclists.

Paul Clark: Measures currently under way include providing better infrastructure, funding cycle and child pedestrian training, improved training and testing for motorists, including motorcyclists, and encouraging these groups to make themselves conspicuous and, in the case of cyclists, by wearing a safety helmet.
	Other initiatives such as anti-drink-drive and speeding campaigns and the provision of 20 mph zones can also contribute to the safety of these groups.
	The effect of such measures are reflected in the 2008 road casualty statistics, which recorded a fall in the numbers of deaths of pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists by 11 per cent., 15 per cent. and 16 per cent. respectively.
	Earlier this year we consulted on proposals for a new road safety strategy for the period beyond 2010. The consultation closed this month and we will be issuing a new strategy later this year.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent estimate he has made of the size of the backlog of road maintenance for strategic roads; and what his estimate is of the cost of clearing the backlog.

Chris Mole: There is no backlog of road maintenance on the strategic road network in England. The network is maintained by applying whole life cost principles, and takes account of the fact that it is not practical or sustainable to maintain the whole network in an as new condition. The condition of the strategic road network is monitored on a regular basis and an annual performance target is set in the Highways Agency Business Plan. This target has been met since it was introduced in 2004-05 in the Highways Agency's Business Plan.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much his Department has spent on emergency repairs to the strategic road network in each year since 2000.

Chris Mole: The Highways Agency does not separately record or report the cost of emergency repairs to the strategic road network. However, the annual accounts for the HA have reported the following in terms of expenditure on maintenance.
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2008-09 914 
			 2007-08 879 
			 2006-07 850 
			 2005-06 852 
			 2004-05 732 
			 2003-04 726 
			 2002-03 760 
			 2001-02 711 
			 2000-01 736 
		
	
	The expenditure figures are for maintenance on the strategic road network managed and maintained by the Highways Agency. This includes renewal of the road surface and repairs to structures, as well as routine maintenance such as gully clearing, white lining, cleaning and winter maintenance. Costs excluded are those associated with our PFI contracts and our traffic and incident management service.
	Expenditure figures have been adjusted to account for spend relating to roads trunked or detrunked in the financial year.

Roads: Safety

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether his Department considers signalled junctions with pedestrian facilities that do not meet the 2005 Department for Transport safety guidelines to be unsafe.

Sadiq Khan: The Department for Transport (DfT) issues good practice guidance to local highway authorities on pedestrian facilities at signal-controlled junctions, which is contained in Traffic Advisory Leaflet 5/05. The document is on the internet at the following address:
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roads/tpm/tal/signsandsignals/pedestrianfacilities/
	and has been placed in the Libraries of the House.
	The relevant highway authority is responsible for the design, implementation and any subsequent monitoring of new crossings-including the consideration of safety issues. It is for them to decide if it is appropriate to follow DfT guidelines, depending on the circumstances of each case.

Slough-Windsor Railway Line

Susan Kramer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what discussions he has had on the upgrade and expansion of the Windsor and Eton Riverside commuter rail line to take 10-carriage trains.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport is working with the train operator and Network Rail to extend platforms on the south-western network to increase capacity on suburban routes, including the Windsor and Eton Riverside line, to enable the operation of 10-carriage trains.

South Central Franchise

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 17 June 2009,  Official Report, column 298W, on Southern: standards, 
	(1)  and the Written Ministerial Statement of 9 June 2009,  Official Report, columns 32-34WS, on the South Central franchise, what  (a) enhancements and  (b) expenditure the Government have agreed to fund as part of the South Central franchise award;
	(2)  whether the Government expect Southern Railways to deliver any specific  (a) enhancements and  (b) investments during its operation of the South Central franchise.

Chris Mole: Under the South Central franchise agreement a number of investments and enhancements will be delivered by the franchisee over the next five years and 10 months. The minimum enhancements required by Government were set out in the invitation to tender dated 3 November 2008. In many areas GoVia has committed to exceed the minimum specified enhancements. In other areas it has committed to additional outputs that were not specified.
	The Department for Transport has agreed to purchase an option offered by the franchisee to refurbish an additional 27 stations. This is in addition to funding the installation of ticket gates at 14 south London stations announced earlier this year.
	Enhancements and investments included in the franchise agreement include:
	14 per cent. additional a.m. peak vehicles arrivals into London terminal stations;
	24 per cent. additional a.m. peak vehicles arrivals into Brighton;
	New late evening and weekend services on routes in south London and on the south coast, and some services on Boxing Day;
	Improved station staffing in the London area;
	120 additional ticket vending machines;
	Smartcards across the franchise from 2012;
	1,122 additional car park spaces;
	1,500 additional secure cycle parking spaces;
	Additional gating schemes at 22 stations (in additional to the 14 already being sponsored by the DfT);
	Station deep clean at all south central managed stations;
	34 stations to benefit from refurbishment;
	CCTV on all trains and all stations;
	Rolling stock refurbishment;
	30 stations to have station travel plans with a £1.25 million implementation budget;
	Information provision improvements on trains and at stations including help points at 40 additional stations.

South Central Franchise

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 17 June 2009,  Official Report, column 298W, on Southern: standards, what targets Southern Railways has set for  (a) trains,  (b) stations and  (c) customer service in the (i) south London, (ii) Sussex and coast and (iii) Gatwick Express service group of its franchise.

Chris Mole: GoVia, as part of the South Central franchise agreement, has committed to achieve the following customer satisfaction scores for 2010 and 2014 as measured by the National Passenger Survey:
	
		
			  Percentage 
			  NPS targets  Stations  Trains  Customer service 
			  2010
			 Sussex and coast 73 75 76 
			 South London 67 62 66 
			 Gatwick Express(1) n/a 86 81 
			 
			  2014
			 Sussex and coast 81 80 81 
			 South London 76 65 73 
			 Gatwick Express(1) n/a 88 85 
			 (1 )Gatwick Express refers to Gatwick to London Victoria non-stop services only. 
		
	
	Targets within the franchise agreement are set on a year by year basis and are measured as the average of the two NPS surveys per year. No targets are set for Gatwick Express stations as Network Rail manages both stations at which Gatwick Express calls.

Strategic Investment Fund

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to page 49 of "Building Britain's Future", Cm 7654, how much his Department has contributed to the Strategic Investment Fund.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport has not made any contribution to the Strategic Investment Fund.

Suburban Development Research

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 19 October 2006,  Official Report, column 1424W, on suburban development research, whether the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council's SOLUTIONS project has  (a) reached its conclusions and  (b) published its recommendations; and how much the programme has received from the public purse.

Sadiq Khan: The Sustainability of Land Use and Transport in Outer Neighbourhoods (SOLUTIONS) project has finished case studies of London and the Wider South East Regions and of the Tyne and Wear City Region and is awaiting feedback from our non-academic partners before reaching final conclusions.
	The project has not yet published its final recommendations but has posted draft reports about the project and case studies on the website www.regionalvisions.ac.uk. The final version of the reports will be published on the website and we will provide a copy for the Libraries of the House.
	The programme of research over a period of five years has received £1.75 million from Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and funding from the Department for Transport and the Department for Communities and Local Government. The expected contribution is expected be approximately £120,000 between the two Departments.

Transport Innovation Fund

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 30 April 2009,  Official Report, columns 1445-46W, on the Transport Innovation Fund, and with reference to his Department's publication, "Supporting the development of TIF packages", published on 4 March 2009, how much funding his Department intends to allocate to the Transport Innovation Fund in each year to 2018-19.

Sadiq Khan: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The following table shows the total value in each year of allocations of support to individual projects that have already been made from the Transport Innovation Fund (TIF). Decisions on the total of TIF funding will be taken as any further projects come up for approval, and for the years from 2011-12 decisions will be made when the Department for Transport's overall budget is allocated as part of Government-wide processes:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 2007-08 120 
			 2008-09 106 
			 2009-10 356 
			 2010-11 291 
			 2011-12 622 
			 2012-13 1,250 
			 2013-14 1,313 
			 2014-15 1,142 
			 2015-16 800 
			 2016-17 0 
			 2017-18 0 
			 2018-19 0

Transport Innovation Fund

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 103W, on the Transport Innovation Fund, how much funding has been allocated to each of the projects named in the answer; and over what timescale in each case.

Sadiq Khan: The following table sets out the total funding allocated by year from the Transport Innovation Fund to each of the projects:
	
		
			  £ million 
			   2007-08  2008-09  2009-10  2010-11  2011-12  2012-13  2013-14  2014-15  2015-16  Total 
			  Rail freight schemes   
			 Gospel Oak/Barking - 18.5 - - - - - - - 18.5 
			 Humber ports - 1.0 3.0 2.0 - - - - - 6.0 
			 Peterborough/Nuneaton - 20.0 30.0 30.0 - - - - - 80.0 
			 Southampton/Birmingham - 15.0 27.8 - - - - - - 42.8 
			 Olive Mount Chord - 0.8 0.9 - - - - - - 1.7 
			 Total rail freight schemes - 55.3 61.7 32.0 - - - - - 149.0 
			
			 Highways Agency traffic management schemes   
			 Birmingham Box (gross cost) - 40.7 76.3 31.6 - - - - - 148. 6 
			 A14 (gross cost) - 10.0 66.8 11.9 - - - - - 88.7 
			 HA contribution to schemes - - -20.6 -4.9 - - - - - -25.5 
			
			 Net TIF cost of HA schemes - 50.7 122.5 38.6 - - - - - 211. 8 
			 Crossrail (DFT grant) 120.0 - 172.0 220.0 622.0 1,250.0 1,313.0 1,142.0 800.0 5,639.0

Transport Innovation Fund

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 30 April 2009,  Official Report, column 1445W, on the Transport Innovation Fund, how much of the Government's contribution to Crossrail will be supported by the Transport Innovation Fund; and from which stream.

Sadiq Khan: All of the Government's grant contribution to the cost of Crossrail will be supported by the Transport Innovation Fund in recognition of its significant contribution to national economic productivity.

Transport: Public Expenditure

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the Statement made by the Secretary of State on 15 January 2009,  Official Report, column 335, on transport infrastructure, what his most recent estimate is of levels of spending on transport in the current three year period.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport's Annual Report and Resource Accounts 2008-09 (HC 454) sets out, in Appendix A, the outturn for spending in 2008-09 and existing plans within departmental expenditure limits (DEL) and annually managed expenditure (AME) for 2009-10 and 2010-11. The following table repeats the total figures shown in that Appendix:
	
		
			  £0,000 
			   2008-09 Outturn  2009-10 Plans  2010-11 Plans 
			  Resource
			 DEL 5,518 6,398 6,371 
			 AME 3,729 4,265 4,493 
			 Total resource budgets 9,247 10,663 10,864 
			 
			  Capital
			 DEL 7,183 8,314 7,412 
			 AME 0 0 0 
			 Total capital budgets 7,183 8,314 7,412 
		
	
	Planned expenditure in-year for 2009-10 and 2010-11 may vary depending, in particular, on decisions made on the take-up of end year flexibility from previous years.

Transport: Radioactive Materials

Simon Hughes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many radioactive material movements within the UK there were by each mode of transport in each year since 1997; and how much waste was transported in each such year.

Paul Clark: The regulations for the transport of radioactive material require that the Secretary of State be notified of certain shipments of radioactive material. These shipments usually involve particularly large amounts of radioactivity and will include shipments of high level waste and irradiated nuclear fuel (often referred to as waste).
	In addition, this Department sponsors periodic surveys into the radiological impact of the normal transport of radioactive material in the UK. These surveys involve collecting data on the number and nature of shipments of radioactive material during a particular year. The reports on these surveys have been placed in the House Libraries and are available via the Department for Transport website at the following address:
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/freight/dgt1/road/guidance/guidance/guidance7class/theradiologicalimpactofthetr1178
	The latest reports in this series were produced in: 2009 (sea transport, Ref. HPA-RPD-050), 2005 (road/rail, Ref. NRPB-W66) and 2003 (air, Ref, NRPB W39).
	The Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS) is the security regulator for the UK's civil nuclear industry. It is responsible for approving security arrangements within the industry and enforcing compliance. For data specific to the transportation of civil nuclear material falling under the Nuclear Industries Security Regulations 2003, you may also wish to view the OCNS annual reports entitled "The state of security in the civil nuclear industry and the effectiveness of security regulation" via the HSE website at the following address:
	http://www.hse.gov.uk/nuclear/ocns/publications.htm

Transport: Wakefield

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much local transport grant his Department has allocated to Wakefield metropolitan and district council in each year since its creation.

Sadiq Khan: The Department for Transport has allocated the following capital funding to Wakefield metropolitan district council (MDC) under the local transport plan system. This funding is not ring-fenced and Wakefield MDC has discretion to spend the allocations in line with its priorities. Funding for Integrated Transport reflects agreement within West Yorkshire on appropriate allocations between the district councils and the Integrated Transport Authority:
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Integrated transport block  Highways maintenance  Total local transport funding 
			 2009-10 3.695 3.011 6.706 
			 2008-09 3.564 3.004 6.568 
			 2007-08 3.300 2.924 6.224 
			 2006-07 3.279 3.399 6.678 
			 2005-06 3.087 3.252 6.339 
			 2004-05 2.801 3.639 6.440 
			 2003-04 2.806 4.190 6.996 
			 2002-03 2.886 3.762 6.648 
			 2001-02 3.679 3.568 7.648 
			 2000-01 - 4.608 4.608 
			 
			  Pre LTP funding
			 1999-2000 2.882 - 2.882 
			 1998-99 2.490 - 2.490 
			  Note: Information on funding for Wakefield from before 1998-99 is not available. 
		
	
	In addition to the above allocations £30.066 million has been provided to Wakefield MDC in the past three years for major projects:
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Project  Funding 
			 2009-10 Hemsworth to A1 Link Road 6.381 
			
			 2008-09 Hemsworth to A1 Link Road 14.654 
			  Glasshoughton Coalfields Link Road 2.977 
			
			 2007-08 Hemsworth to A1 Link Road 2.519 
			  Glasshoughton Coalfields Link Road 3.535 
		
	
	Wakefield MDC receives a general revenue allocation on transport through the Department for Communities and Local Government's formula grant.

Travel

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport 
	(1)  what recent estimate his Department has made of the comparative journey times from city centre to city centre between  (a) London and Paris,  (b) London and Brussels,  (c) London and Amsterdam and  (d) London and Cologne when travelling by (i) air and (ii) rail;
	(2)  what recent assessment his Department has made of the relationship between journey times and the proportion of journeys made by rail for  (a) inter-city journeys within England,  (b) inter-city journeys between England and Scotland,  (c) inter-city journeys between London and continental Europe and  (d) inter-city journeys between UK cities other than London and continental Europe.

Paul Clark: Journey time is only one of the factors that people consider when they are making a choice about how to travel. Other factors include reliability, frequency and price. The Department for Transport has not carried out a detailed assessment of comparative journey times by rail and air. However the evidence does point to passengers making rail their first choice when it can provide a fast and convenient service.
	For example, passengers on short-haul trips to European destinations are already increasingly turning to rail where that is an attractive option. Flights to Paris have fallen by over 20 per cent. since 2000, and flights to Brussels by over one third. Increasing the speed of trains within the UK can also have benefits. The journey time between Manchester and London has decreased from nearly three hours in 2007 to around two hours now. The number of rail passengers between Manchester and London increased by 64 per cent. between 2003 and 2008 from 2.1 million to 3.3 million per annum and over the same time period the number of air passengers has decreased from 1.9 million to 1.4 million, a 30 per cent. decrease.
	On 15 January 2009 the Government announced that they were setting up a company, High Speed 2, to consider the case for new high speed rail services from London to Scotland.

UK Innovation Fund

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport with reference to page 51 of "Building Britain's Future", Cm 7654, how much his Department plans to contribute to the UK Innovation Fund in each of the next 10 years.

Chris Mole: The Department for Transport has no plans, at this time, to contribute to the UK Innovation Fund.

Waterloo Station

Susan Kramer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when he expects platforms 21 to 24 at Waterloo station to receive domestic rail services; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Mole: Capacity at Waterloo will be increased by lengthening platforms thereby allowing longer trains, carrying more people.
	We are working with Network Rail to extend platforms at Waterloo station and across the whole south western network to increase capacity on some suburban routes from eight to 10-carriage trains by 2014.
	As part of this, we are investigating how Waterloo and Waterloo International Terminal platforms 20 to 24 can be used to help increase capacity on the network. Work has been carried out on platform 20 and option development work is now progressing on other platforms and enhancing the tracks outside the station to support the increase in capacity. We are continuing to work with South West Trains to provide the additional carriages for longer trains.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Afghanistan: Overseas Aid

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to ensure that fertiliser supplied to Afghanistan from his Department's budget is not misappropriated by the Taliban for use in weapon production.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID), the stabilisation Aid Fund and USAID jointly funded the governor of Helmand's wheat seed distribution programme ($11 million in 2008-09). The fertiliser was distributed through a USAID contractor who tracked recipients through a post-distribution monitoring structure. Military and civilian planners in Helmand assessed that the risk of the distributed fertiliser being used in bomb making was low.
	This year's counter narcotic plan will distribute low nitrogen content fertilisers, so it will be difficult to use in weapons construction. The distribution and use of fertiliser will be monitored.

Afghanistan: Overseas Aid

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent on aid to Afghanistan in 2008-09; and what proportion of such aid was delivered directly in Helmand province. [Official Report, 12 October 2009, Vol. 497, c. 2MC.]

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) provided £143 million of support to Afghanistan in 2008-09 through its bilateral programme. Of this, we spent £21.9 million on growth, livelihoods and governance programmes directly in Helmand province.
	DFID publishes expenditure in its Annual Report and the Statistics in International Development publication. These are available in the Library of the House and on the DFID website:
	www.dfid.gov.uk

Africa: Overseas Aid

Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding his Department has allocated to the agricultural sector in each of the bilateral country programmes in sub-Saharan Africa in each of the last five years.

Gareth Thomas: The total amounts that Department for International Development (DFID) has spent on projects and programmes in the agriculture sector through its bilateral programme in sub-Saharan Africa in the last five years are set out in table 1. Table 2 sets out the amounts that DFID has spent on food aid and food security programmes in sub-Saharan Africa over the same period. In addition to this, DFID also provides funds to national Governments through general budget support. Last year (2008-09) we estimate that £15.6 million of DFID's bilateral budget support was spent on the agriculture sector in Africa.
	DFID's White Paper, published on 6 July, sets out our vision for a doubling of agricultural production in Africa over the next 20 years.
	
		
			  Table 1: DFID bilateral spending on agriculture programmes in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) 
			  £000 
			  Recipient country  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Botswana 122 0 35 0 0 
			 Burkina Faso 20 0 0 0 0 
			 DRC 0 0 0 0 698 
			 Ethiopia 1,531 544 23 15,490 4,204 
			 Gambia 0 18 0 0 0 
			 Ghana 3,199 4,632 1,045 3,008 2,723 
			 Kenya 1,510 1,049 1,421 472 110 
			 Lesotho 283 364 306 150 155 
			 Liberia 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Madagascar 33 22 18 16 0 
			 Malawi 3,292 644 2,517 2,529 2,547 
			 Mozambique 207 270 491 331 427 
			 Namibia 470 596 289 0 0 
			 Nigeria 2,125 3,021 2,609 1,835 1,039 
			 Rwanda 396 282 1,995 1,394 1,090 
			 SADC 0 50 100 0 0 
			 Sierra Leone 0 0 17 16 79 
			 Somalia 0 0 500 0 735 
			 South Africa 705 599 463 292 259 
			 SSA regional 107 192 110 279 104 
			 Sudan 0 0 0 0 3,213 
			 Swaziland 126 0 89 1 0 
			 Tanzania 74 4 80 164 224 
			 Uganda 1,358 244 64 90 304 
			 Zambia 142 43 55 59 35 
			 Zimbabwe 3 0 0 25 2,747 
			 Sub-total 15,703 12,574 12,227 26,151 20,693 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: DFID bilateral spending on food aid and food security programmes in SSA 
			  £000 
			  Recipient country  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Burundi 0 0 2,640 0 0 
			 Chad 0 0 524 0 0 
			 Eritrea 0 4  243 0 
			 Ethiopia 59 386 464 182 20,744 
			 Guinea 0 0 0 155 40 
			 Kenya 5 0 0 215 165 
			 Lesotho 330 584 607 471 644 
			 Liberia 0 163 124 0 0 
			 Malawi 4,014 710 867 177 0 
			 Niger 0 0 0 183 39 
			 South Africa 0 526 1,138 1,326 0 
			 SSA regional 300 16 0 0 0 
			 Sudan 1,670 740 936 747 0 
			 Swaziland 0 0 0 1,722 798 
			 Uganda 0 0 2,000 9,500 8,000 
			 Zambia 209 4,370 569 447 831 
			 Sub-total 6,587 7,499 6,705 15,368 31,261

Africa: Poverty

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with his G8 counterparts on progress towards meeting the target of doubling funding for the alleviating of poverty in Africa between 2005 and 2010; and on what dates these discussions were held.

Gareth Thomas: The Secretary of State discussed this issue when he met counterparts from Germany, France and the United States at the World Bank annual meetings, held in Washington in April on 25-26 April. Further to this, I attended the G8 Development Ministers meeting in Rome on 11-12 June, where these issues were also discussed. Ministers and officials have regular conversations on this subject with counterparts.
	The G8, at its summit in Italy, agreed a renewed commitment to development and to meeting its aid commitments including those for Africa. A mechanism for achieving greater accountability and transparency of G8 promises including an interim accountability framework was also agreed. In addition, the Prime Minister secured agreement for an international assessment of what is needed to meet the Millennium Development Goals, to take place in 2010.

CDC

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will direct CDC to cease conducting business through each of its subsidiaries located in off-shore financial centres.

Douglas Alexander: CDC will in future only commit capital to new funds and direct investments in jurisdictions implementing the international tax standard and in developing countries they are aiming to help.

Children's Rights

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent representations he has had from UNICEF on its Promise Me campaign on children's rights in respect of climate change and HIV/AIDS.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development has not to date received representations from UNICEF on this campaign.

Damian McBride

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development on what date he last met Mr. Damian McBride in the course of his official duties.

Douglas Alexander: I have not met with Mr. McBride in the course of my ministerial duties since his resignation on 11 April 2009.

Departmental Accountancy

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when he expects to publish his Department's resource accounts for 2008-09.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development's (DFID) resource accounts were published with the annual departmental report on the 16 July 2009. Copies are available in the Library of the House and on the DFID website:
	www.dfid.gov.uk

Departmental Billing

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of invoices from suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in June 2009.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development paid 90 per cent. of correctly rendered invoices within 10 days of receipt in June 2009.

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of employees in his Department  (a) are on a flexible working contract,  (b) are on a job share employment contract and  (c) work from home for more than four hours a week.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) is committed to improving the work/life balance of its staff, and provides a wide range of flexible work pattern options.
	On joining DFID, and at any subsequent time, all staff have the option to request to join our Flexible Working Hours Scheme (FWHS). Agreement to this is made by line managers, taking into account the operating needs of their unit. Options include home and remote working; term-time working; reduced hours; compressed hours; and flexible start and finish times.
	We do not retain a central register of staff who have asked to join our FWHS, nor of all those who are working under those arrangements, but as at 30 June 2009, 145 (i.e. 8.6 per cent.) of our Home Civil Service (HCS) staff were working reduced hours.
	DFID does not hold central records of those on job share employment contracts. Similarly, there are no central records of employees who work from home for more than four hours per week. To provide this would incur disproportionate cost.

Departmental Contracts

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many contracts let by his Department were awarded to businesses with fewer than 50 employees in each of the last five years; and what the monetary value of such contracts was in each such year.

Michael Foster: The number of contracts let by the Department for International Development (DFID) to suppliers with fewer than 50 members of staff could not be made available without incurring disproportionate cost.

Departmental Internet

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 14 July 2009,  Official Report, column 250W, on departmental internet, what the  (a) names and  (b) versions are of the web browsers used on the (i) desktop machines and (ii) laptop computers used by his Department's (A) Permanent Secretary, (B) chief information officer, (C) head of communications and (D) head of finance.

Michael Foster: All Department for International Development desktop and laptop computers use a standard PC build that includes Internet Explorer 7.

Departmental Manpower

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of employees in his Department are  (a) women and  (b) men; and what the average hourly pay of the (i) male and (ii) female employees in his Department was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Michael Foster: Civil service statistics are collected by ONS from the annual civil service employment survey. The latest published statistics are for 31 March 2008.
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/pdfdir/cs0109.pdf

Departmental Marketing

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what he estimates the cost to his Department of the rebranding of his Department's overseas aid will be; from which line in his Department's budget the cost will be paid; what the cost was of designing the new UKaid logo; which company designed it; if he will place in the Library a copy of the design contract; and what names other than UKaid were considered for the rebranding;
	(2)  if he will place in the Library a copy of each logo which was considered during the redesign process for rebranding his Department's overseas aid; on which  (a) items,  (b) buildings,  (c) vehicles and  (d) other places the new logo will be placed; what he estimates the cost of printing (i) stationery, (ii) business cards and (iii) other items with the new logo will be; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: 'UKaid' was developed through a process of research and testing with the UK public. From this research a range of designs were tested, of which 'UKaid' was the preferred option. It would be inappropriate to make public copies of unsuccessful designs.
	We anticipate spending approximately £130,000 on re-branding our overseas aid, which will come from DFID's central communications budget. Of this, just over £98,000 was spent on developing, designing and testing the logo to ensure that it was meaningful to the UK public. It was commissioned via the Government's Central Office of Information (COI), following best practice and ensuring optimal value for money. As COI are the Government's procurement specialists no design contract was required.
	In order to minimise the additional costs, and to ensure that the logo is introduced sensitively and appropriately, 'UKaid' will be phased in both in the UK and in the countries where we work. Within the UK the 'UKaid' logo will be used on a range of public communications, as well as DFID's website. Electronic templates will be updated at no extra cost; the logo will be incorporated into products as they are due to be replaced or replenished.

Departmental Postal Services

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent on Royal Mail services in each of the last two years.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development spent the following sums using the Royal Mail in the last two years:
	2007-08: £31,084
	2008-09: £28,000

Departmental Procurement

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress his Department has made in implementing the recommendations of the Glover Report in its procurement processes.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) current procurement processes now meet or partially meet the majority of the Glover Report recommendations. We have introduced a new Commercial Strategy which encourages the use of outcome based specifications, and our contract award details are published online. DFID's Innovation Procurement Plan will be finalised this year. We are on track to meet the other recommendations through the strategic reforms we are bringing in as part of DFID's Procurement Improvement Plan.

Developing Countries: Debts

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent representations he has received on  (a) the effect of the operation of vulture funds on standards of living in the developing world and  (b) the extent to which UK businesses participate in such funds.

Gareth Thomas: The Department for International Development has received regular representations from members of the public and non-governmental organisations on the harmful impacts of 'vulture funds'. These representations usually stress that 'vulture funds' divert much-needed resources away from developing countries and exploit debt relief that was provided with the aim of relieving poverty. They also express concern at the use of UK courts to pursue legal claims. A survey by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank in 2008 reported that 10 businesses based in the UK and UK overseas territories had brought legal action on debts owed by heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC), although creditors may litigate for a variety of reasons.
	The UK Government have already taken a range of actions to reduce the extent of the problem of 'vulture funds'. In addition, I am pleased that today my hon. Friend the Economic Secretary to the Treasury has launched a consultation on legislation that would restrict the proportion of past HIPC debts that a creditor could reclaim under UK laws. Copies have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses and are available on the Treasury's website:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/

Developing Countries: Health Services

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent representations he has received on the introduction of a currency transaction levy to raise funds for health initiatives in the least developed countries.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) has received representations about the currency transaction levy (CTL) in relation to the work of the High Level Taskforce on Innovative International Financing for Health Systems from NGOs in various meetings at official level. The Taskforce Secretariat, of which the United Kingdom is a member, has received 33 campaign e-mails about CTL to date. It has also received two written submissions about CTL in response to its public consultation exercise. In addition, the Prime Minister has received three letters about the CTL.
	The Prime Minister co-chairs the taskforce together with World Bank President Robert Zoellick. The taskforce aims to mobilise additional resources for health systems strengthening in the poorest countries in the world through the use of innovative financing mechanisms. The Taskforce report is available at:
	http://www.internationalhealthpartnership.net/en/taskforce.

Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer Adjournment.

Douglas Alexander: I will next be visiting the Department's joint headquarters in Glasgow on Friday.

Iran: Afghanistan

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with his Iranian counterpart on support for Afghan refugees in Iran.

Michael Foster: The Secretary of State for International Development has not had any recent discussions with the Iranian Government about support for Afghan refugees in Iran.
	The Department for International Development has contributed £19 million to the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva to address refugee issues worldwide including in Afghanistan and Iran.

Maldives: Housing

Gary Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department intends to take to support the President of the Maldives in the delivery of additional social housing.

Michael Foster: Since 2005-06 the Department for International Development (DFID) has not provided any bilateral overseas development assistance to the Maldives.
	DFID continues to provide support indirectly to the Maldives through its contribution to the European Community (EC). The EC's country strategy in the Maldives focuses on institutional capacity building, support to social sectors and the environment. DFID is also an important stakeholder and funder to international financial institutions such as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. Their main focus in the Maldives is policy and institutional reform. We have encouraged these institutions to engage constructively with the Maldivian Government.

Overseas Aid

Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding his Department has allocated to  (a) agriculture and  (b) food security in each of the last three years in (i) bilateral expenditure, (ii) multilateral contributions and (iii) research; and how much it intends to allocate to each such category in each of the next three years.

Michael Foster: The following table sets out the Department for International Development's (DFID) spending on agriculture and food security for the years 2005-06 to 2007-08. Comparable figures are not yet available for 2008-09.
	The Prime Minister announced the Government's commitment to spend £1.1 billion on agriculture and food security over the period 2009-10 to 2011-12. Programming of this expenditure is not yet finalised.
	
		
			  DFID agriculture and food security spending 
			   £ million 
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			  Bilateral
			 Agriculture 83 95 77 
			 Fisheries 4 6 2 
			 Rural development 26 25 49 
			 Sub total 114 126 128 
			 
			 Food security 18 19 36 
			 
			 Total agriculture and food security 132 145 164 
			 of which RNR Research 33 26 27 
			 
			  Multilateral
			 Agriculture 32 108 95 
			 Fisheries 6 2 6 
			 Rural development 20 29 19 
			 of which RNR Research 6 3 6 
			 Sub total 58 138 120 
			 
			 Food security 31 27 19 
			 
			 Total agriculture and food security 89 165 139 
			 Total 221 310 303 
			 of which RNR Research 38 30 32 
			  Notes: 1. Excludes emergency humanitarian food aid and basic nutrition 2. Multilateral sectoral share-latest data available 2007-08 3. Agriculture includes livestock 4. RNR research includes agriculture, fisheries and forestry

Palestinians: EC Aid

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with the European Commission on non-governmental organisations delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza in co-operation with Hamas.

Douglas Alexander: The issue was most recently discussed at a meeting between Department for International Development and EU officials on 6 May.

Palestinians: International Assistance

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations he has made to the United States Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Aid Control on the provision of emergency licences to USAID-partner organisations to engage social services and civil society in Gaza.

Douglas Alexander: I have not made representations to the United States Department of the Treasury on this issue.

Palestinians: International Assistance

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department plans to take in respect of UK-based, aid-giving non-governmental organisations which deliver aid with the co-operation of Hamas.

Douglas Alexander: The UK Government expect all partner organisations and agencies to take the utmost care when carrying out their work in Gaza to fulfil their obligations under EU and UK legislation, including in relation to contact with Hamas. We have informed our partners of this position.

Palestinians: International Assistance

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance his Department is giving to enable aid to reach Gaza.

Douglas Alexander: The Department for International Development (DFID) has provided £1 million to the World Food Programme (WFP) to co-ordinate the relief items brought into Gaza by the UN and non-governmental organisations, to ensure that aid reaches those in most need. WFP's work includes the provision of transport, logistics and co-ordination of advocacy for improved access. This is part of DFID's almost £50 million overall response to the recent fighting in Gaza.
	The UK Government continue to press the Israeli Government to allow full, consistent and unhindered access to Gaza for aid and aid workers, as well as to relax restrictions on the types of goods that are allowed to cross the border.

Senegal: Overseas Aid

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what  (a) direct and  (b) indirect aid his Department provided to Senegal in 2008.

Gareth Thomas: Details of the Department for International Development's (DFID) bilateral expenditure were published in DFID's Annual Report 2009 which is available from the Commons Library or online at:
	www.dfid.gov.uk
	In financial year 2008-09 the only DFID bilateral aid to Senegal was delivered by not-for-profit organisations through the Civil Society Challenge Fund and amounted to £163,000. Data on DFID's share of multilateral aid to Senegal for 2008-09 are not yet available, but in 2007-08 it is estimated that £9.2 million of DFID's core contributions to multilateral organisations went to Senegal.

Sri Lanka: Politics and Government

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka since the end of the conflict in that country; and what steps his Department is taking to support internallydisplaced Tamils.

Michael Foster: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement made on 14 July 2009,  Official Report , columns 12-13WS. This sets out our assessment of the humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka and our efforts to urge the Government of Sri Lanka to meet its pledge of returning internally displaced persons to their homes as soon as possible.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when he plans to answer Question 280485, tabled on 12 June 2009, on payments to contractors; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Foster: The answer to question 280485 will be given today.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

British Council: Finance

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 3 March 2009,  Official Report, column 1413W, on terrorism: finance, what criteria the British Council is using to allocate funding to each  (a) country and  (b) project; and how it plans to assess the effectiveness of such expenditure.

Chris Bryant: The spending profile of the £6 million allocated to the British Council's Reconnect initiative to tackle radicalisation and promote understanding overseas will be £1 million, £2 million and £3 million from 2008-09 to 2010-11 respectively. There is no ring-fenced allocation for each country. Allocations depend on the quality of project proposals submitted for funding, measured by anticipated impact, and the priority accorded to that country. The British Council has a rolling professional evaluation process in place for all its programmes.

British Overseas Territories: Discrimination

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which UK overseas territories do not have constitutions which prohibit discrimination on the grounds of  (a) sexual orientation,  (b) ethnicity and  (c) gender.

Chris Bryant: holding reply of 20 July 2009
	 Three overseas territories have constitutions with Bills of Rights dating from before 1997, namely Bermuda, Montserrat and Anguilla. Six overseas territories have new constitutions agreed since 1997 (Turks and Caicos Islands, Gibraltar, Falkland Islands, British Virgin Islands and-not yet in force-Cayman Islands, and St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha), each of which has a Bill of Rights.
	All of the Bills of Rights have an open-ended non-discrimination provision prohibiting discrimination on grounds of a status listed or other status. It is not therefore necessary to set out every status in the provision. Where existing constitutional provisions fall short of this, we ensure that negotiations on a new constitution result in a Bill of Rights which reflects at a minimum the European convention on human rights and the international covenant on civil and political rights.

Compensation: Foreigners

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department has paid in compensatory or consolatory payments to non-UK nationals in each year since 1997.

Chris Bryant: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not keep such records of total amounts of compensatory or consolatory payments made to non-UK nationals.

Damian McBride

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what date he last met Mr. Damian McBride in the course of his official duties.

Chris Bryant: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has never had a meeting with Mr. Damian McBride in or outside his ministerial duties.

Departmental Cybercrime

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last reviewed his Department's policy on recording numbers of attempted attacks against its computer systems.

Chris Bryant: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office complies with the mandatory requirements of the Security Policy Framework in relation to information security. The relevant requirement states that:
	"All ICT (information and Communications technology) systems must have suitable identification and authentication controls to manage the risk of unauthorised access, enable auditing and the correct management of user accounts".

Departmental Internet

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department has spent on advertising its Locate system for British nationals who plan to travel abroad in each year since its inception.

Chris Bryant: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The promotion of Locate is a feature of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) Know Before You Go public information campaign aimed at helping British travellers to stay safe and healthy abroad. It is impossible to calculate the exact spend on advertising Locate because the campaign combines a number of different travel safety messages, and local promotion initiatives have been funded from Posts' devolved budgets. However, we are able to specify that in 2008 the FCO paid £25,000 for Locate's media launch in the UK, and £24,300 for artwork and the development/printing of Locate leaflets and posters, mainly for use by our Posts abroad.

Departmental Procurement

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress his Department has made in implementing the recommendations of the Glover Report in its procurement processes.

Chris Bryant: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has been engaging with the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) on the Glover report and made the following progress in respect of the recommendations:
	We advertise our higher value UK requirements on the FCO website. The portal is being developed by OGC and consideration is being given to advertising on the Supply 2 Gov portal as an interim solution for our UK requirements.
	We have been running a pilot of an OGC approved e-tendering system and we expect to meet this recommendation by the deadline.
	We already do this for contracts advertised on the FCO website, but using the single portal will be considered in conjunction with the OGC development of the opportunities portal.
	We already seek detail of all previous relevant experience, not just that limited to the public sector.
	We published our Innovation Procurement Strategy and Implementation Plan on the FCO website on 15 July 2009.
	We encourage greater use of outcome-based specifications.
	We have altered our supplier adoption processes to clearly identify small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and enable the collection of SME expenditure data.
	The OGC will be rolling out guidance to facilitate the implementation of the remaining Glover recommendations and the FCO will seek to adopt this guidance into its policy and processes in the required time scales.

Departmental Training

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department has spent on training for  (a) him and  (b) each other Minister in his Department in the last 12 months; and what the purpose of each training activity was.

Chris Bryant: I refer the hon. Member to the answer by my hon. Friend, the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Gillian Merron) of 20 April 2009,  Official Report, column 505W.
	In addition to the training detailed in that reply, in the last 12 months £125 has been spent on IT training for my right hon. and noble Friend the Minister for Africa, Asia and the UN, Lord Malloch-Brown.

Departmental Work Experience

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what provision is made to enable students to undertake work experience in his Department; by what means members of the public may obtain information about work experience in his Department; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Bryant: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) centrally run work experience programmes are aimed at broadening the diversity of our work force.
	We currently offer up to 40 students a place every year on the Partner University Placement Scheme, a positive action work experience programme to promote social inclusion and ethnic diversity within the FCO.
	The FCO also participates in Cabinet Office diversity internships; taking up to 10 students and recent graduates from the Summer Development Programme (SDP) and the Summer Placement Scheme (SPS). The SDP is an internship for students from a black or minority ethnic background and the SPS is for students with a registered disability.
	We are also taking part in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills Public Sector Graduate Internships, offering up to 30 places through financial year 2009-10.
	Members of the public can find details of our centrally run work experience schemes through the work experience pages of the FCO website at:
	www.fco.gov.uk/workexperience

Eritrea: International Assistance

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will seek agreement at EU level to withhold EU aid payments to Eritrea if there is no agreed improvement in Eritrea's performance on human rights.

Ivan Lewis: We remain concerned about the reports of human rights abuses in Eritrea.
	The Eritrean Government have requested a discussion of human rights at the next EU Article 8 Political Dialogue meeting in September 2009.
	The European Commission is conducting a mid-term review of its European development fund 10 (EDF 10) in October 2009. This assesses the relevance and performance of the current allocation of €122 million against the guidelines set out in the Commission's Eritrea country strategy paper.
	We will consult closely with the European Commission in October if there is no improvement in Eritrea's performance on human rights.

Eritrea: Overseas Aid

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what financial support his Department has provided to Eritrea in the last 12 months.

Ivan Lewis: In the last 12 months, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has provided £107,000 to a female genital mutilation project to support the National Union of Eritrean Women and £95,000 supporting agricultural workers, via the National Federation of Eritrean Workers, to obtain fair pay and working conditions. Both projects are run through the Government of Eritrea but are closely monitored by our embassy in Asmara through, for example, visiting local health clinics where workshops are taking place.

Foreign Relations

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which ambassadors to the UK he has requested to attend the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in the last two years; and for what reasons in each case.

Chris Bryant: Ministers and senior officials regularly meet ambassadors at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and a full list of invitations to meetings would be disproportionately costly to provide.

Gilad Shalit

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to secure the release of Gilad Shalit.

Ivan Lewis: holding answer July 2009
	 The UK continues to call on Hamas for the immediate, unconditional, and safe release of Corporal Shalit. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary made this clear in his press statement on 25 June 2009 and the message was also reiterated during the EU Foreign Ministers' meeting on 15 June 2009.

Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer Adjournment.

Chris Bryant: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has no plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer Adjournment.

Hamas

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with aid agencies based in the UK to ensure that aid they provide is not misappropriated by Hamas; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: All the organisations the Department for International Development (DFID) funds must meet their obligations in respect to EU and UK legislation on contact with Hamas. DFID officials are in regular contact with our partners to underline this position.

Holidays Abroad: Death

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many British citizens died whilst on holiday in another EU member state in each of the last five years.

Chris Bryant: Given the volume of information, my predecessor, the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Gillian Merron) placed a copy in the Library of the House.

Iran: Diplomatic Service

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many locally employed British Embassy staff in Iran have immunity from jurisdiction under Article 38.1 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations 1961.

Ivan Lewis: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 No locally employed members of staff at British Embassy in Tehran have immunity under Article 38.1 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations 1961.

Iran: Diplomatic Service

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the merits of conferring diplomatic status on non-Diplomatic Service staff employed by the British Embassy in Iran in accordance with the Diplomatic Service Regulations 2006.

Ivan Lewis: Staff are appointed under article 7 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Regulations 1961, according to the functions they perform at the mission. In practice, the privileges and immunities staff enjoy stem from the receiving state's recognition that they have been appropriately classified, in line with their functions. The diplomatic service regulations do not apply to locally engaged staff who are employed on local terms and conditions, governed by local law and practice.

Jordan: Asylum

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many Jordanian nationals were granted asylum in the UK in 2007-08.

Phil Woolas: I have been asked to reply.
	One Jordanian national was granted asylum in the UK in the financial year 2007-08.

Languages

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the number of staff required by his Department who speak each foreign language; how many staff in his Department speak each such language; how many staff in his Department have learnt a language in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Bryant: The following table shows the estimate of the number of operational speakers required by language. These figures are drawn from central human resources records which are constantly under review and subject to change at short notice for operational reasons. I am awaiting a report regarding the number of speakers in each language, which I will place in the Library once available.
	209 officers have learnt a language in the last 12 months where it was necessary to do so to fulfil the job specification. In addition, a further 73 officers have learnt a language in order to help in-country acclimatisation.
	
		
			   Number 
			 Albanian 6 
			 Amharic 1 
			 Arabic 40 
			 Azeri 1 
			 Bosnian 6 
			 Bulgarian 6 
			 Burmese 1 
			 Croatian 5 
			 Czech 9 
			 Danish 2 
			 Dari 6 
			 Dutch 6 
			 Estonian 2 
			 Farsi 6 
			 Finnish 2 
			 French 178 
			 Georgian 1 
			 German 35 
			 Greek 5 
			 Hebrew 2 
			 Hungarian 6 
			 Icelandic 2 
			 Indonesian 9 
			 Italian 10 
			 Japanese 20 
			 Kazakh 1 
			 Korean 5 
			 Latvian 1 
			 Lithuanian 1 
			 Macedonian 5 
			 Mandarin 23 
			 Nepali 4 
			 Norwegian 4 
			 Polish 7 
			 Portuguese for Europe 17 
			 Portuguese for Americas 16 
			 Romanian 3 
			 Russian 50 
			 Serbian 4 
			 Slovak 4 
			 Slovene 2 
			 Spanish for Europe 12 
			 Spanish for Americas 60 
			 Swahili 4 
			 Swedish 6 
			 Tagalog 1 
			 Thai 4 
			 Turkish 11 
			 Ukrainian 6 
			 Urdu 2 
			 Uzbek 1 
			 Vietnamese 5

Lithuania: Sexuality

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Lithuanian Government on the effect of recent changes to Lithuanian law on the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in that country.

Chris Bryant: The Government are disappointed that on 14 July 2009 the Lithuanian Parliament overruled the veto of their outgoing President, Valdas Adamkus, and passed the controversial law on the Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effect of Public Information.
	The new law contains a clause which classifies "agitating in favour" of homosexual or bisexual relationships as potentially harmful to the development of minors. Our ambassador to Lithuania, together with EU partners, has expressed our concerns about this law, including in a meeting with President Adamkus on 22 June 2009. Lithuania's incoming President, Dalia Grybauskaite, is obliged to sign the Bill into law.
	The Government welcome President Grybauskaite's statement that she disapproves of aspects of the law and will take all legal measures to seek its improvement. We will continue to work with EU partners to ensure that Lithuania satisfies its human rights obligations.

Lord Malloch-Brown: Official Residences

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when Lord Malloch-Brown plans to vacate Flat 2, Admiralty House; and what use is envisaged for the property after it is vacated.

Chris Bryant: Lord Malloch-Brown intends to vacate his ministerial residence on 27 July 2009.
	With regard to the future use of the property, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 20 July 2009,  Official Report, column 770W.

Middle East: Armed Conflict

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether evidence has been reported to him of war crimes being committed in Gaza by  (a) the Israeli Defence Force and  (b) Hamas.

Ivan Lewis: There are several reports in the public domain submitted by various international organisations and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) on the issue of alleged war crimes committed by both sides during the recent Gaza conflict. The most recent report of 2 July 2009 from Amnesty alleges that breaches of international humanitarian law were committed by both Israel and Hamas.
	As my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has continued to state since 12 January 2009, we take seriously all allegations of breaches of international humanitarian law during the Gaza conflict and have consistently stated that they should be properly investigated.

Morocco: Fishery Agreements

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Moroccan fishing zones referred to in the EU-Morocco Fisheries Partnership Agreement are those in the Moroccan Exclusive Economic Zone.

Huw Irranca-Davies: I have been asked to reply.
	The Moroccan fishing zones referred to in the EU Morocco Fisheries Partnership Agreement are the Atlantic waters of the Moroccan EEZ. They do not cover the Mediterranean waters of Morocco's EEZ.

Palestinians: Israel

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he  (a) has taken and  (b) plans to take during the next 12 months at the United Nations in respect of recognition by the Palestinian Authority of the State of Israel as a Jewish state; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: We welcome the fact that the Palestinian Authority recognises the state of Israel and is prepared to negotiate a peace deal with it.
	The nature of the state of Israel, and the role that religion plays, are matters for Israelis, although we would expect Israel to respect the rights of minorities as undertaken in Israel's declaration of independence and basic laws. We welcome the fact that the Israeli Government have not said that Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish state should be a precondition for entering negotiations with the Palestinians.
	The UK position is clear that a comprehensive peace should be based on two states, living side by side within secure and agreed borders based on those of 1967, with Jerusalem as the capital for both states. Such a solution is the only way to do justice to the national aspirations of the Jewish people and of the Palestinians.
	The two-state solution was envisioned in UN Security Council resolution (UNSCR) 1850 of 16 December 2008, which the UK supported, and reaffirmed by the UK-led UNSCR 1860 of 8 January 2009. The UK will continue to make this position clear in future UN discussions.

Shanghai World Expo

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he plans to attend the Shanghai World Expo 2010 event.

Ivan Lewis: The Government are committed to giving full support to Shanghai Expo 2010. Questions of ministerial attendance have not yet been finalised.

Spirit of Humanity

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects to complete his investigation into the Spirit of Humanity interception; and by what means he plans to communicate his findings to hon. Members.

Ivan Lewis: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary raised this issue with the Israeli Foreign Minister on 1 July 2009. We have also raised this with officials from the Israeli embassy in London and await further clarification.

Sri Lanka

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has made an assessment of humanitarian conditions in the Manik Farm camp in Sri Lanka; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Foster: I have been asked to reply.
	There are an estimated 284,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Manik Farm camp. The Department for International Development's (DFID) humanitarian experts' latest assessment is that the conditions in the camp remain basic but continue to improve as the priority needs of shelter, food, medicine and immediate access to surgical treatment are gradually met. However, we are increasingly concerned about the lack of freedom of movement for the IDP population and the restrictions put on protection activities, such as ensuring the safety of the IDPs and reuniting children with their families.
	I also refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement made on 14 July,  Official Report; column 12-13WS. This sets out DFID's current position on the humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka: International Assistance

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the International Monetary Fund on the proposed emergency loan package to the Sri Lankan Government; and if he will make a statement.  [Official Report, 9 September 2009, Vol. 496, c. 34-36MC.]

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government are deeply concerned about the humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka and are also committed to helping Sri Lanka avoid an economic crisis that would impact most on Sri Lanka's poor.
	The Chancellor is in close contact with the IMF and with ministerial colleagues, especially the Foreign Secretary and the Secretary of State for International Development.
	The International Monetary Fund has not yet presented a programme for Sri Lanka. Once a programme is presented, it will be assessed on its merits and the situation on the ground in Sri Lanka at the time.

Ukraine: Monuments

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library a copy of the report by Major J. Dart on the monuments and sites significant to United Kingdom military history in the Crimea; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Bryant: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 I have placed a copy of Major Dart's report in the Library. There have been a number of developments since this report was written in May 2007.
	Our embassy in Kyiv, in conjunction with local Sevastopol authorities, has been actively seeking a successful resolution to the long-standing issue of the Cathcart Hill monument. This private monument was built by a local entrepreneur in 1993 supported by public subscription, but has fallen into disrepair due to weathering, vandalism, theft and lack of maintenance by its owner.
	Following the efforts of the embassy, the land on which the monument stands and associated historical artefacts have now been transferred to the ownership of the Sevastopol city administration, a prerequisite for the expenditure of Ukrainian state funds. Work is now under way for the official British Crimean War memorial near the village of Dergachi to become the focus for official commemoration with the complex at Cathcart Hill being simplified to become a place for quiet contemplation.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Asbestos

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what assessment her Department has made of the health risks to  (a) a child aged five years and  (b) an adult aged 30 years from an exposure to 48 fibres of (i) crocidolite and (ii) amosite per millilitre of air in a 12-week period;
	(2)  what assessment her Department has made of the risk of  (a) a child aged five years and  (b) and adult aged 30 years developing mesothelioma as a consequence of exposure to asbestos;
	(3)  what assessment she has made of the health risks to  (a) a child aged five years and (b) an adult aged 30 years from an exposure to 72 fibres of chrysotile per millilitre of air in a 12-week period.

Jonathan R Shaw: The information requested could be produced only at disproportionate cost as it is currently not available or cannot be produced on a sound scientific basis in respect of a five-year-old.
	The exposures in the question appear to relate to the "action levels" in the 2002 Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations which are no longer current. The current limit in the 2006 regulations is lower at 0.1 fibres per millilitre of air averaged over a four-hour period. Irrespective of this limit the regulations require exposures to be reduced to the lowest reasonably practicable level below 0.1 fibres per millilitre.
	Risk assessment models are available for mesothelioma and asbestos-related lung cancer. These can be used to assess risk for given levels of exposure, exposure durations, types of asbestos, and the age at which exposure occurs-but only within the working age range.

Attendance Allowance

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people claimed attendance allowance in  (a) Vale of York constituency and  (b) England in (i) 1980, (ii) 1997, (iii) 2001, (iv) 2005 and (v) 2008.

Jonathan R Shaw: The available information is in the following table:
	
		
			  Attendance allowance-cases in payment 
			  Date  Vale of York parliamentary constituency  England 
			 November 1980 - - 
			 November 1997 1,300 1,006,300 
			 November 2001 1,500 1,072,600 
			 November 2005 1,960 1,213,340 
			 November 2008 2,370 1,321,380 
			  Notes: 1. The information is not available for 1980. 2. Figures taken from the 100 per cent data. (November 2005 and November 2008) are rounded to the nearest 10. 3. Figures for November 1997 and November 2001 are based on 5 per cent. sample caseload data, adjusted to 100 per cent. caseload data and rounded to the nearest 100, and are subject to sampling error. 4. Figures show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital.  Source: DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study and 5 per cent. sample

Attendance Allowance

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the monetary value of attendance allowance paid to residents from  (a) the Vale of York and  (b) England was in (i) 1980, (ii) 1997, (iii) 2001, (iv) 2005 and (v) 2008.

Jonathan R Shaw: The available information is in the table.
	
		
			  Expenditure on attendance allowance in (a) the Vale of York and (b) England 
			  Cash prices (£ million) 
			  Financial year  Vale of York  England 
			 1980 - - 
			 1997 3.0 2,073 
			 2001 3.8 2,566 
			 2005 5.3 3,200 
			 2008 7.1 3,929 
			  Notes: 1. Estimates are not available for 1980. 2. Estimates for 1997 and 2001 are based on 5 per cent. sample caseload data, adjusted to 100 per cent. caseload data and to published benefit expenditure. 3. Estimates for 2005 and 2008 are based on the Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. 4. Estimates for 2008 are based on averaging August and November 2008. 5. Estimates are adjusted to published benefit expenditure.  Source: DWP statistical and accounting data

Carer's Allowance

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have claimed carer's allowance in  (a) St Ives constituency,  (b) Cornwall and  (c) England in each of the last five years.

Jonathan R Shaw: The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of people who became entitled to Carer's Allowance 
			   St. Ives parliamentary constituency  Cornwall  England 
			 2004 360 1,790 141,780 
			 2005 390 1,910 146,470 
			 2006 320 1,740 147,120 
			 2007 370 1,670 125,590 
			 2008 350 1,710 143,400 
			  Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Figures exclude some short term flows not captured by the relevant scans. 3. Figures exclude flows where people move out of one area and into another while remaining on the benefit. 4. Figures include people with entitlement but who do not actually receive Carer's Allowance, for example, because of the overlapping benefits rule.  Source:  DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study

Carer's Allowance

Fraser Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people resident in  (a) Sunderland and  (b) England were in receipt of carer's allowance on the latest date for which figures are available.

Jonathan R Shaw: The information is provided in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of people in Sunderland and England receiving carer's allowance at November 2008 
			   Number 
			 Sunderland local authority 3,340 
			 England 417,800 
			  Notes: 1. Excludes those with entitlement but payment has been suspended. 2. Figures rounded to nearest 10.  Source: Department for Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study

Carer's Allowance: Morecambe

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency received carer's allowance in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many people in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency  (a) are entitled to and  (b) receive carers' benefit.

Jonathan R Shaw: The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			  The number of people entitled to or receiving carer's allowance in Morecambe and Lunesdale parliamentary constituency 
			   Number 
			 Number of people with entitlement 1,810 
			 Number of people receiving carer's allowance 850 
			  Notes: 1. Data are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Number of people with entitlement includes those where carer's allowance is not in payment but retain underlying entitlement. 3. Number of people receiving carer's allowance excludes those with entitlement where the payment has been suspended.  Source: Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study

Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission: Complaints

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average time taken for complaints against  (a) the Child Support Agency and  (b) the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission to be resolved was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Helen Goodman: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the hon. Member with the information requested and I have seen the response.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty :
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner as the Child Support Agency is now the responsibility of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average length of time for complaints against (a) the Child Support Agency and (b) the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission to be solved was in the latest period for which figures areavailable.
	The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission took responsibility for the Child Support Agency from 1 November 2008. The information the Commission collates on the average length of time to solve complaints is limited to the percentage of complaints which have been fully resolved or have a resolution plan put in place within 15 working days of receipt of the complaint.
	The latest available information shows that in the year to March 2009, 97% of complaints have been fully resolved and/or have a resolution plan in place within 15 working days of receipt.
	The information the Commission collates does not allow it to distinguish between complaints addressed to the Child Support Agency and those to the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.
	I hope you find this answer helpful.

Child Support Agency: Manpower

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many  (a) directors,  (b) senior managers,  (c) specialist and delivery managers and  (d) executive support and administration staff there were in each Child Support Agency office in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how much was paid in bonuses to  (a) directors,  (b) senior managers,  (c) specialist and delivery managers and  (d) executive support and administration staff in the Child Support Agency in each of the last five years.

Helen Goodman: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the Hon. Member with the information requested and I have seen the response.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner as the Child Support Agency is now the responsibility of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.
	and;
	How much was paid in bonuses to  (a) directors,  (b) senior managers,  (c) specialist and delivery managers and  (d) executive support and administration staff in the Child Support Agency in each of the last five years.
	The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission took responsibility for the Child Support Agency from 1 November 2008. The available information on the number of directors, senior managers, specialist, delivery managers, executive support and administration people is set out in the attached Table 1. The information provided includes some elements of estimation due to the significant organisational changes since 2005, and in particular within the past year meaning that it is difficult to make like for like comparisons.
	Over the period from 2004 to 2009, two separate Department for Work and Pensions schemes for payment of bonuses have operated within the Child Support Agency; a modest special bonus scheme and an individual performance bonus scheme. The guidelines, policy funding and framework for these schemes were set by the Department. Individual performance bonuses are based on annual appraisal markings and are awarded at the end of the operational year. Additional special bonuses can be awarded to an individual outside the annual appraisal system, to recognise and reward an exceptional personal or team achievement.
	Table 2 shows the total amount paid to Agency employees as individual performance bonuses for the years 2007-08 and 2008-09 only. For the period 2004-05 to 2006-07, we are unable to analyse the total spend by job role and have therefore given information on the total spend in each year. Information on special bonus payments broken down by job role is also not available. The total spend is therefore shown for all employees for all years requested.
	I hope you find this answer helpful.
	
		
			  Table 1: Breakdown of Child Support Agency employees by job description 
			   March 2009 
			  Location  Specialist Manager  Delivery Manager  Senior Manager  Director  Grand Total 
			 Birkenhead CSAC 9.54 47.33 2 - 58.87 
			 Dudley CSAC 11.54 53.17 2 - 66.71 
			 Falkirk CSAC 10.54 50.85 4 - 65.39 
			 Hastings CSAC 10.69 43.82 1 - 55.51 
			 Plymouth CSAC 11.96 52.06 2 - 66.02 
			 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Benton Park View 235.05 25.59 29 1 290.64 
			 Other Sites 44.28 111.05 13 1 169.33 
			 Grand Total 333.6 383.87 53 2 772.47 
			 Total All Staff Employed - - - - 9.014 
		
	
	
		
			  March 2008 
			  Location  Specialist Manager  Delivery Manager  Senior Manager  Director  Grand Total 
			 Birkenhead CSAC 11.43 46.31 2 - 59.74 
			 Dudley CSAC 15.13 44.48 2 - 61.61 
			 Falkirk CSAC 11.84 55.03 4 - 70.87 
			 Hastings CSAC 15.58 42.07 1 - 58.65 
			 Plymouth CSAC 8.97 52 2 - 62.97 
			 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Benton Park View 256.41 20.76 25 4 306.17 
			 Other Sites 58.68 114.24 11 3 186.92 
			 Grand Total 378.04 374.89 47 7 806.93 
			 Total All Staff Employed - - - - 9,502 
		
	
	
		
			  March 2007 
			  Location  Specialist Manager  Delivery Manager  Senior Manager  Director  Grand Total 
			 Birkenhead CSAC 9.75 40.97 2 - 53.82 
			 Dudley CSAC 13.13 49.2 4 - 67.09 
			 Falkirk CSAC 17.43 46.28 2 - 65.71 
			 Hastings CSAC 10.56 26.15 1 - 37.71 
			 Plymouth CSAC 8.96 51.23 2 - 64.05 
			 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Benton Park View 277.38 14.97 25.61 4 321.96 
			 Other Sites 79.76 111.17 14.06 4 208.99 
			 Grand Total 416.97 339.97 50.67 8 819.33 
			 Total All Staff Employed - - - - 1,1225 
		
	
	
		
			  March 2006 
			  Location  Specialist Manager  Delivery Manager  Senior Manager  Director  Grand Total 
			 Birkenhead CSAC 9.31 41.86 2 - 53.17 
			 Dudley CSAC 17.4 43.2 1 - 61.6 
			 Falkirk CSAC 24.27 35.6  - 59.87 
			 Hastings CSAC 11.56 29.94  - 41.5 
			 Plymouth CSAC 9.61 49.6 3.94 - 63.15 
			 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Benton Park View 165.08 11.95 15.61 3 195.64 
			 Other Sites 51.84 87.77 10 1 150.61 
			 Grand Total 289.07 299.92 32.55 4 625.54 
			 Total All Staff Employed - - - - 11,034 
		
	
	
		
			  March 2005 
			  Location  Specialist Manager  Delivery Manager  Senior Manager  Director  Grand Total 
			 Birkenhead CSAC 1.86 52.98 3 - 58.27 
			 Dudley CSAC 12.86 65.27 1 - 79.89 
			 Falkirk CSAC 12.35 48.57 1 - 64.4 
			 Hastings CSAC 9.95 50.3 1 - 62.25 
			 Plymouth CSAC 1 60.16 2.94 - 66.1 
			 Newcastle-Upon Tyne Benton Park 212,59 4 13 4 234.24 
			 Other Sites 64.79 92.52 8 - 166,31 
			 Grand Total 315.4 373.8 29.94 4 731,46 
			 Total All Staff Employed - - - - 9,784 
		
	
	
		
			  Estimated Executive and Administrative Support 
			Number 
			 March 2005 Estimate - Based on Number of Senior Managers 28 
			 March 2006 Estimate - Based on Number of Senior Managers 20 
			 March 2007 Estimate - Based on Number of Senior Managers 35 
			 March 2008 By Organisation Design 35 
			 March 2009 By Organisation Design 37 
			  Notes: 1. The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission took responsibility for the Child Support Agency (CSA) from the Department for Work and Pensions on 1 November 2009. As a result, information available on the number of managers and support staff working within the CSA for the 2008-09 year is limited as the existing organisational structure underwent significant change. 2. There will be some managers shown as working for the CSA in the 2008-09 year who may have been working entirely within the new services offered by the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission. 3. Information on the numbers of Executive Support and Administration Staff can not be extracted from CSA data. An estimate of the number of staff deployed in those roles has therefore been provided. This estimate is extrapolated from the number of senior managers in the CSA for 2005 to 2007, and on the organisational design from 2007-08 and 2008-09. 4. The Child Support Agency operates from six main sites with a supporting network of around 100 smaller sites. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Child Support Agency Bonus Payments by Job Role 
			  £ 000 
			   March 2005  March 2006  March 2007  March 2008  March 2009 
			 Directors (1)- (1)- (1)- 108 30 
			 Senior Managers (1)- (1)- (1)- 237 185 
			 Delivery Managers (1)- (1)- (1)- 181 84 
			 Specialist Managers (1)- (1)- (1)- 162 108 
			 Executive and Admin Support (1)- (1)- (1)- 13 9 
			 Total special bonus paid (all Staff) 450 559 394 358 563 
			 Total of all Bonus Paid (All Staff) 3,768 3,873 3,734 3,977 2,631 
			 (1) Information on bonuses paid in the years 2005, 2006 and 2007 can not be broken down by job role.

Children: Maintenance

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the cost of implementing the child support elements of the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act 2000  (a) were estimated to be on introduction of the legislation and  (b) have been.

Helen Goodman: holding answer 12 June 2009
	The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have therefore asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner as the Child Support Agency is now the responsibility of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the cost of implementing the child support elements of the Child Support Pensions and Social Security Act 2000  (a) were estimated to be and  (b) have been to date.
	The Child Support Agency's Reform Programme was closed by October 2005, and it had spent £539m on implementing the reforms, compared to an estimated cost in the original business case of £606m.
	I hope you find this answer helpful.

Children: Maintenance

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what procedures there are for non-resident parents to appeal against liability orders for child maintenance.

Helen Goodman: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the hon. Member, with the information requested and I have seen the response.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner. The Child Support Agency is now the responsibility of the Child Maintenance Enforcement Commission.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what procedures there are for non-resident parents to appeal against liability orders for child maintenance.
	Liability Orders are currently made in the Magistrates' Court (or Sheriff Court in Scotland). The non-resident parent may appeal such an order to the Administrative Court of Appeal, or Court of Session in Scotland, on the grounds that the decision was wrong in law or the court did not have the jurisdiction to make the decision.
	I hope you find this answer helpful.

Children: Maintenance

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is taking to resolve cases of arrears in the payment of child maintenance.

Helen Goodman: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have therefore asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is taking to resolve cases of arrears in the payment of child maintenance.
	Collection of maintenance, including arrears, remains a priority for the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission. In March 2009 alone, the Commission collected and arranged over £100 million in maintenance, almost £14 million of which was arrears, and collected a total of £158 million in child maintenance arrears in the year to the end of March 2009.
	The current amount of arrears owed by non-resident parents is the cumulative total of sixteen years of maintenance owed. In order to address these cases, the Commission is continually improving enforcement. In the twelve months to January 2009, the Commission completed 120,970 enforcement actions, including almost 70,000 deduction from earnings orders.
	The Commission can already apply to the court for a non-resident parent who wilfully refuses to pay child maintenance to be disqualified from driving or committed to prison. Powers yet to be commenced under the 2008 Act include asking the court to impose a curfew or to disqualify the non-resident parent from holding or obtaining a passport.
	The measures proposed in this year's Welfare Reform Bill include the Commission having the ability to remove passports and driving licences administratively, without needing to go through the courts. It is such measures which we will continue to use to take action against those parents who owe arrears to their children.
	I hope you find this answer helpful.

Children: Maintenance

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether her Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) reviewed recent research on the effectiveness of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission and its predecessor agency in recovering child maintenance payments from non-resident parents.

Helen Goodman: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have therefore asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has (a) commissioned and (b) reviewed recent research on the effect of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission and its predecessor agency on the recovery of child maintenance payments from non-resident parents.
	The Commission publishes a quarterly Summary of Statistics which contains a full range of statistical information assessing the impact of the Child Support Agency on the recovery of child maintenance. The latest copy is available in the House of Commons library or online at:
	www.childmaintenance.org/publications/statistics.html
	In addition, in 2007 the Child Support Agency commissioned research to better understand the client experience, and the issues and service that clients believe need to be improved. This research was published in February 2008 as the DWP Research Report: No 471 CSA Client Insight Research 2007. The Agency also commissioned two reports on the use of deduction from earnings orders in the collection of child maintenance; DWP Research Reports 520 and 530.
	The Department for Work and Pensions commissioned the Relationship and Separation survey in 2008, DWP Research Report 503, to inform the changes to the system of child maintenance which led to the introduction of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission. This report focuses on the number and form of child maintenance arrangements in place, demographic information about the child maintenance population, past and future use of information and support, views on the changes to the child support system and likely behaviour as a result of these.
	There have also been extensive reports conducted by DWP in the past on compliance levels, the effects of maintenance direct and international perspectives on child support.
	Full details of all the Departments research reports are published online at the following link:
	www.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rrs-index.asp.
	The Commission has begun its own programme of research, measurement and evaluation to provide robust measures of the impact of such services provided by the Commission, on our clients, as well as to understand more about the attitudes, behaviours, service needs and expectations of its current and potential future clients.
	We will continue to work on increasing our understanding and knowledge of external research, and programmes are in place internally to provide an ongoing appraisal of the research landscape.
	I hope you find this answer helpful.

Children: Maintenance

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what procedures are in place for obtaining child maintenance payments from a non-resident parent who has no permanent contact address.

Helen Goodman: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the hon. Member, with the information requested and I have seen the response.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about child maintenance, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner.
	You asked the Secretary of State for the Department for Work and Pensions, what procedures are in place for obtaining child maintenance payments from a non-resident parent who has no permanent contact address.
	The lack of a permanent address is not necessarily a barrier to the assessment and collection of child maintenance. If a non-resident parent can be contacted by telephone the information needed to carry out a maintenance calculation will be gathered by telephone and a contact address is not needed. If the non-resident parent has an employer correspondence can be sent via the employer. The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission has several means which it can use to trace those non-resident parents who are evading their financial responsibilities, including contacting the DVLA, the Prison Location Service and credit reference agencies. The small numbers of cases where the non-resident parent can not be traced are kept under review and the child maintenance liability does not come to an end.
	The lack of a permanent address is also not a barrier to the collection of child maintenance in many cases. Where the non-resident parent is in receipt of benefit, a contribution to maintenance can be taken from the benefit without a permanent contact address. Similarly if a non resident parent is in employment, maintenance can be deducted direct from wages. Maintenance can also be paid by direct debit or standing order as well as by cheque or cash.
	I hope you find this answer helpful.

Children: Maintenance

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission will take account of tax credits in its calculation of non-resident parents' income from 2011; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Goodman: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the hon. Member with the information requested and I have seen the response.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner.
	You asked the Secretary of State for the Department for Work and Pensions, whether the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission will take account of tax credits in its calculation of non-resident parents' income from 2011; and if she will make a statement.
	Tax Credits will no longer be taken into account in the calculation of non-resident parent's income from 2011 as a consequence of the move from net income to gross income.
	The White Paper proposed that tax credits should no longer be included in the calculation of a non-resident parent's gross weekly income. It stated (at paragraph 4.17) "It would not be appropriate for a liability to be based on a combination of tax credits that are currently being received and income from a previous period. Including tax credits from the previous year would complicate, rather than simplify, the way in which maintenance is assessed. Accordingly, and to reduce the complexity of administrative arrangements, we have concluded that tax credits should no longer be included as income."
	The Government has committed to move to using information supplied by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), which will make maintenance calculations in the future scheme faster, more accurate and enable a more transparent process. HMRC taxable income information supplied to the Commission will largely derive from employers' end of year PAYE returns and from individual taxpayers' self-assessment returns. Neither data source will include tax credits as they do not form part of taxable income.
	The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is continuing to work with HMRC to decide how to make best use of this information and the outcome of this work will be reflected in a detailed definition of the income measure to be used in the maintenance calculation. This will be included in a set of affirmative regulations, which will be introduced for parliamentary scrutiny in advance of the planned start date of 2011 for the future scheme.
	I hope you find this answer helpful.

Children: Maintenance

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations she has received on the adjustment of child maintenance payments to take account of a reduction in the working hours of a non-resident parent.

Helen Goodman: Child maintenance assessments are based on the income of a non-resident parent rather than their working hours. I have responded recently to a parliamentary question on this subject raised by the hon. Member for South-West Bedfordshire (Andrew Selous) in which I confirmed that the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission routinely re-assesses child maintenance liability once a non-resident parent informs them of a reduction in their working hours which has reduced their income.

Cold Weather Payments

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many cold weather payments have been made as a result of temperatures reported by each weather station in each year since such payments were first made; and which weather stations cover each constituency.

Helen Goodman: Information on the estimated number of cold weather payments made for each weather station in Great Britain in 1999-2000 and each year from 2001-02 has been placed in the Library. (Information for other years is not available).
	A list of the weather stations linked to each parliamentary constituency in Great Britain for winter 2008-09 has been placed in the Library.

Council Tax Benefits: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point receive 100 per cent. council tax benefit.

Helen Goodman: The information is not available in the format requested.

Crisis Loans

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many crisis loans decision-makers are in post; and how many she expects to be in post by May 2010.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking how many Crisis Loan decision makers are in post; and how many she expects to be in post by May 2010. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Since January 2009 we have seen increases in Crisis Loan applications and for the past five months they have averaged around 279,000 per month. Therefore, a decision was made to increase the number of Crisis Loan decision makers. We now have 1800 Crisis Loan decision makers taking calls with a further 200 expected to be fully operational by the end of September.
	Across Jobcentre Plus we are currently recruiting staff into customer service operational roles to ensure we are able to deal with current increases in workload. We continuously review staffing levels on this basis therefore I am unable to say how many Crisis Loan decision makers are expected to be in post in May 2010.

Crisis Loans Line

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what steps she is taking to increase the proportion of calls made to the Crisis Loans Line which are answered; and how many calls the line  (a) received and  (b) answered in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  what steps she is taking to increase the number of telephone calls to the Crisis Loans Line which are answered.

Helen Goodman: Jobcentre Plus does not have a single Crisis Loan call line. There are 20 Crisis Loan Benefit Delivery Centres nationally, each with their own dedicated 0800 telephone number and we do not have robust statistical information on a national level.
	In March 2008 Jobcentre Plus had 900 Crisis Loan decision makers answering telephones and making decisions in the 20 Benefit Delivery Centres that handle applications for Crisis Loans. Crisis Loan applications have more than doubled since October 2006, (taking us to an average of 220,000 applications per month at the end of 2008) and plans were put in place to deploy an extra 700 staff from our Contact Centre Directorate. This work was completed in April 2009 and enabled us to answer more calls first time.
	However, we have seen further increases in Crisis Loan applications since January 2009 and for the past five months they have averaged around 279,000 per month. Therefore, a decision was made to increase the number of our Crisis Loan decision makers even further. We now have 1,800 Crisis Loan decision makers taking calls with a further 200 expected to be fully operational by the end of September.
	This will enable Jobcentre Plus to answer more calls first time.

Debts: Advisory Services

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what financial support her Department provided to debt counselling agencies in the latest year for which figures are available.

Helen Goodman: My Department does not currently provide financial support to debt counselling agencies. However, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is providing funding of approximately £28 million in 2009-10 for the face-to-face debt advice project.

Departmental Accountancy

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when she plans to publish her Department's resource accounts for 2008-09.

Jim Knight: The Department's resource accounts for 2008-09 are due to be laid before the House on Monday 20th July 2009. This will be a typeset version of the account, with a published version being made available by The Stationery Office during August 2009 (exact date yet to be confirmed).
	This is the third year in succession that the Department will have laid its resource accounts before the recess.

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of employees in her Department are on a flexible working contract.

Jim Knight: The information is as follows.
	 Flexible working contracts
	At the end of May 2009, 33 per cent. (36,037) of employees in the Department for Work and Pensions were on part-time flexible working contracts.
	Flexible contracts are only one of a range of flexible working arrangements including flexible working patterns that are available to DWP employees. DWP also promotes flexibility through home working and job sharing.
	Employees are made aware of civil service wide job sharing opportunities through a direct link to the civil service online job-share notice board, hosted on the civil service website.

Departmental Consultants

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much her Department spent on consultants in 2009.

Jim Knight: The Department has spent £9.7 million on management consultants in the three months from January to March 2009, the latest period for which validated figures are available. This represents a 49 per cent. reduction on the equivalent period in 2008.

Departmental Contracts

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many contracts let by her Department were awarded to businesses with fewer than 50 employees in each of the last five years; and what the monetary value of such contracts was in each such year.

Jim Knight: The information requested is not collated centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Databases

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  which of the planned databases that will be managed by her Department or one of its agencies and which will hold personal information on members of the public are expected to become operational in each of the next five years; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  what categories of personal information on members of the public will be held on each of her Department's and its agency's databases expected to become operational in the next five years; what estimate she has made of the likely number of individuals' details each such database will hold when fully operational; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Department intends that one new database (known as CAMLite) will become operational during this period. CAMLite will enable improvements in the delivery of services so that customer requirements can be handled more effectively and efficiently, and it will record every contact with a customer. When fully operational, CAMLite is expected to hold details of around 7 million customers.
	The categories of personal information that the database is expected to contain will comply with the Department's formal registration under the Data Protection Act.
	Following the publication of the cross-Government data handling review in June 2008, privacy impact assessments are conducted where new IT systems hold significant amounts of personal data.

Departmental Electronic Equipment

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the answer of 24 November 2008,  Official Report, column 980W, on departmental electronic equipment, how much  (a) her Department and  (b) its agencies have spent on (i) flat screen televisions, (ii) DVD players and (iii) stereo equipment since November 2008.

Jim Knight: The information requested is not readily available and can be obtained only at disproportionate costs.

Departmental Manpower

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of employees in her Department are  (a) women and  (b) men; and what the average hourly pay is of the (i) male and (ii) female employees.

Jim Knight: The DWP workforce as at June 2009 is made up of 68 per cent. female and 32 per cent. male. The DWP pays employees an annual salary and does not use an hourly rate. There are seven grades below the senior civil service (SCS) in DWP. Male and female employees in each grade are paid within the same payscale regardless of their gender. An employee's exact position on their payscale will depend upon their personal pay history.
	The most recent DWP Equal Pay Audit published in 2008 shows that the average male and female salaries are £19,911 and £19,085 respectively. This information does not include SCS salaries.

Departmental Official Engagements

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the official engagements of Ministers in her Department were between  (a) 1 and 31 March,  (b) 1 and 30 April and  (c) 1 and 31 May 2009.

Jim Knight: holding answer 12 June 2009
	 I am depositing a table of information in the Library.

Departmental Postal Services

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much her Department spent on Royal Mail services in each of the last two years.

Jim Knight: The last two financial years of DWP spending with Royal Mail Group is given in the table.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2008-09 184,857,504 
			 2007-08 189,469,725

Departmental Procurement

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress her Department has made in implementing the recommendations of the Glover Report in its procurement processes.

Jim Knight: The Department has built the requirements of the Glover Report into its Commercial Strategy and a revised version was published in March 2009. The Strategy expressly recognises the specialist expertise that small enterprises can provide and states that DWP will encourage the use of small and medium sized enterprises (SME) in its supply chains. The Strategy has objectives to make it easier for suppliers to compete for contracts and to encourage a diverse supply base, it also commits to monitor the use of these enterprises.
	The lead on most of the 12 recommendations of the Glover report is with the Office of Government Commerce (OGC). The Department fully supports all the recommendations and is actively engaged with OGC to facilitate development and adoption of the new procedures and tools required by Glover. The Department's progress in implementing each of the Glover recommendations is that DWP:
	 (i) advertises key contracts via electronic media and publishes key contract awards electronically, it is on course to do both these things for all contracts via an OGC public sector online portal by 2010 - addressing Glover recommendations 1,2 and 3;
	 (ii) already flags tendering opportunities thought especially suitable for SMEs during the advertising process - meeting Glover recommendation 4;
	 (iii) has adopted standard pre-qualification questionnaires-meeting Glover recommendation 5;
	 (iv) adopts a principle of competitive neutrality so all relevant experience of all bidders is taken into account when selecting tenderers-meeting Glover recommendation 6;
	 (v) takes a flexible approach to supplier accreditation, where appropriate allowing businesses to refer to other accreditations they already hold-meeting Glover recommendation 7;
	 (vi) published its Innovation Procurement Plan on 19th May 2009 which meets the requirements of Glover recommendation 8;
	 (vii) adopts outcome based specifications requiring continuous improvement as a means of driving innovation-meeting Glover recommendation 9;
	 (viii) will expect prime contractors to make their sub-contracting opportunities accessible through an on-line portal, when made available by OGC, and that they use contract conditions for their contractors in DWP supply chains that are no worse than those DWP has with the prime contractor-addressing Glover recommendations 10 and 11;
	 (ix) has, since 2002, reported annually the value of DWP contract spend with SMEs-meeting Glover recommendation 12. The value of DWP contracts with SMEs in 2008/9 was £252 million, about 7 per cent. of total commercial spend in that year.
	In summary the Department has made good progress in implementing the Glover recommendations. Its action to date means it has already met seven of the recommendations and, working with OGC, is on course to meet the remaining five recommendations to the set timetable.

Departmental Safety

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much her Department spent on compliance with requirements of health and safety at work legislation in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The information requested is not collated centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Electronic Government

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps are being taken to improve the usability of the Directgov website.

Jim Knight: In 2009 Directgov conducted a baseline exercise to benchmark the quality of the website and has put in place a plan for improvement, which is now being implemented as part of the overall web rationalisation and convergence programme.
	Directgov is in the process of designing a further continuous user improvement programme for the Directgov website which will start in 2009. The programme of user testing will involve both citizen and expert reviews. Each wave of research will review a number of different user journeys across the site to identify any usability issues. This is an on-going project. Each wave will test different journeys with different user groups in order to continually improve the customer experience.
	Strategies are being put in place to monitor search engine optimisation, metrics and customer comments to improve the Directgov service by making it easier for people to find what they want.
	Directgov recently improved the design of its homepage based on feedback from a representative sample of customers. The new homepage design is structured in a way that allows customers to quickly find essential Government information on topical issues such as swine flu, and allows customers to easily distinguish main navigation links from secondary and peripheral content.
	Directgov has also commissioned a project that looks at the future shape of the website. The project is following a user-centred design approach with frequent rounds of user testing to ensure optimal findability and usability of content.

Employment and Support Allowance

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what information her Department holds on the proportion of claimants for employment and support allowance (ESA) that  (a) do not meet work capability assessment qualification criteria for receipt of ESA,  (b) meet work capability assessment qualifying criteria for the work related activity group and  (c) meet the criteria for the support group, broken down by type of sickness or impairment; and if she will make a statement.

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many work capability assessments have taken place; and what estimate her Department has made of the number and proportion of customers who have taken the work capability assessment who have been moved onto  (a) jobseeker's allowance,  (b) ESA Work Related Activity Group and  (c) ESA Support Group in each month since October 2008.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 20 July 2009
	Detailed information on the work capability assessment for receipt of employment and support allowance is not available at the present time.
	Employment and support allowance replaced incapacity benefit for new claims from 27 October 2008. The latest quarterly data available is November 2008. More comprehensive figures are expected to be available when the February 2009 publication is produced in August 2009.

Employment and Support Allowance

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of incapacity benefit claimants she expects will be migrated to employment and support allowance in each of the next three years.

Jonathan R Shaw: In the White Paper, we set out our intention to migrate incapacity benefit customers to employment and support allowance between 2010 and 2013, using the Work Capability Assessment. We are currently looking closely at the process of migrating customers to employment and support allowance, to plan for implementation and develop a detailed strategy. We will ensure that the transition runs smoothly, fits within our overall programme and that our plans are flexible enough to adapt to changing economic circumstances as necessary.

Employment Schemes

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people in each region have participated in the  (a) Workstep,  (b) Work Preparation,  (c) Employment Zones,  (d) Progress2Work,  (e) Work Path and  (f) New Deal for (i) 50 plus, (ii) disabled people, (iii) partners and (iii) musicians programme more than once in each relevant year since 2001;
	(2)  how many people in each region have participated in the  (a) Workstep,  (b) Work Preparation,  (c) Work Path,  (d) Progress2Work and  (e) Employment Zones programme in each (i) relevant year since 2001 and (ii) of the last eight quarters;
	(3)  how many individuals have been on the  (a) Work Trial,  (b) Workstep,  (c) Work Preparation,  (d) Work Path,  (e) Progress2Work and  (f) Employment Zones programme more than once in a year by region since their inception.

Jim Knight: New Deal for Musicians is an integral part of New Deal for Young People and New Deal 25 plus. Information on people participating more then once in New Deal for Musicians, New Deal 50 plus, New Deal for Partners and WorkTrial is not collated centrally.
	Work Path is not a programme in itself, rather an umbrella name for three employment programmes; Access to Work, Work Preparation and Workstep. As such, the information is not available in the format requested.
	Information about Employment Zones is not available by region.
	The available information has been placed in the Library.

Employment Schemes

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of 18 to 24 year-olds claiming jobseeker's allowance moving towards 12 months are expected to move on to  (a) a job provided by the Future Jobs Fund,  (b) support to take an existing job in a key employment sector,  (c) a work-focused training place and  (d) a place on the community task force as part of the Government's Young Person's Guarantee.

Jim Knight: We do not forecast unemployment and are therefore unable to predict numbers of take-up for each element of the Young Person's Guarantee.
	When the Young Person's Guarantee is introduced early next year, all 18 to 24-year-olds approaching 12 months unemployment on jobseeker's allowance will be guaranteed an offer of either a job under the Future Jobs Fund, support to take a job in a key employment sector, a work focused training place or a place on a community task force.

Employment Schemes

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions who will provide assistance in relation to  (a) the Future Jobs Fund,  (b) support to take an existing job in a key employment sector,  (c) work-focused training places and  (d) places on a community task force under the Young Person's Guarantee.

Jim Knight: The fund will be managed centrally by the Department for Work and Pensions. Advisers in every Government office in England are available to support potential bidders with the process.
	In Scotland and Wales, Jobcentre Plus will provide support to potential bidders, in consultation with the devolved Administrations and the Scottish and Welsh Offices.
	Jobcentre Plus will play a key role in identifying customer needs and referring customers to the full range of support on offer. For the training element, young people will also be able to go direct to a provider, Nextstep or the Careers Advice Service.

Employment Schemes

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what recent estimate she has made of the average cost per participant in  (a) the Future Jobs Fund,  (b) the Community Task Force,  (c) training under the Young Person's Guarantee and  (d) support to obtain an existing job in a key employment sector;
	(2)  what recent estimate she has made of  (a) the likely average cost per participant of the Young Persons' Guarantee in 2009-10,  (b) the number of young people aged between 18 and 24 years old likely to participate in the Young Persons' Guarantee in (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11 and (iii) 2011-12 and  (c) the cost of the Young Persons' Guarantee in the next three years;
	(3)  what estimate she has made of the cost of  (a) the Community Task Force and  (b) additional training places provided under the Young Persons' Guarantee in (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11 and (iii) 2011-12.

Jim Knight: The estimated average costs are commercially sensitive but will be met within the allocated budget for the Young Person's Guarantee.
	The Government do not publish unemployment forecasts. We will, however, meet the terms of the Young Person's Guarantee and all 18 to 24-year-olds will receive an offer of employment, training or community work.
	Funding has not been allocated beyond 2010-11.
	Funding for the Community Task Force and the Work-Focused Training was announced as part of the Budget settlement for the Young Person's Guarantee funding. The budget for the Young Person's Guarantee is approximately £1.1 billion over 2009-10 and 2010-11.
	The budget for the training element of the Young Person's Guarantee is £122 million over 2009-11.
	We are unable to estimate the cost of the Community Task Force element as expenditure will depend on the demand for the programme.

Employment Schemes

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how Jobcentre Plus plans to inform 18 to 24-year-old jobseekers of the job guarantee scheme announced on 22 April 2009; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: All Jobcentre Plus advisers will be made aware of the jobs and training opportunities created by the Young Persons Guarantee in their area. Jobcentre Plus staff will ensure that all eligible customers are made aware of the relevant opportunities. This will be an integral part of the ongoing support given to customers to find work.

Employment Schemes

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions by what means 18 to 24-year-olds who have been unemployed for over 12 months at the time of the introduction of the job guarantee announced on 22 April 2009 will be given access to the scheme; what priority will be accorded to them in relation to 18 to 24-year-olds who become unemployed for over 12 months after the introduction of the scheme; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: Customers who are already in long-term unemployment need intensive support and this is best delivered out with the Young Person's Guarantee. When the guarantee is introduced young people who have been unemployed for 12 months or more will already be receiving this support through either the Flexible New Deal or other existing programmes.

Employment Schemes: Lone Parents

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many lone parents have received a training allowance of up to £400 since September 2007.

Helen Goodman: holding answer 15 May 2009
	This training allowance refers to Train to Gain. This is administered by the Learning Skills Council and sits within the stewardship of BIS.

Employment Services

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps her Department is taking to help the long-term unemployed return to work.

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps her Department is taking to assist people who have been out of work for over a year; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Department is keen to ensure that everyone who is out of work has the support they need to find a job, and this help increases the longer someone has been unemployed.
	The introduction of the flexible new deal in phase 1 areas from October 2009 will establish a new, unified approach for every jobseeker, whatever their age, skills or barriers to work, from the 12-month point of their claim. The flexible new deal will deliver work-focused support, tailored to each individual's needs and local labour market requirements. It is envisaged that we will introduce this scheme in phase 2 areas from October 2010.
	Until the flexible new deal is introduced, the new deals will continue to run in phase 2 areas.
	The 2009 Budget made an additional £2.8 billion available to DWP, on top of the £1.3 billion funding announced in the pre-Budget report, which will ensure we can continue to maintain our support to jobseekers through the economic downturn, including funding to support the flexible new deal.
	£1.1 billion of this will fund the young person's guarantee; from January 2010, all customers aged 18-24 who are approaching 12 months of their claim to jobseeker's allowance will have access to one of the following offers:
	A new job created through the Future Jobs Fund;
	Support to move into an existing job in a key employment sector;
	Work-focused training; or
	A work experience placement through the Community Task Force.
	Some elements of the guarantee will be available sooner. In October of this year the first jobs created by the Future Jobs Fund will be available, and training to enter key employment sectors will be available in the autumn.
	Jobseeker's allowance customers can do unlimited volunteering, and train for up to 16 hours per week, alongside active job search. Jobseekers may also undertake up to two weeks of full-time training in any 12-month period, without jeopardising their benefit entitlements.

Employment: Young People

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps her Department is taking to assist young people who are out of work; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Department is committed to giving everyone the support they need to find employment as quickly as possible, whatever their age.
	On 6 April 2009, as part of the Government's response to the economic downturn, the Department for Work and Pensions put in place extra support for newly unemployed customers, including information and advice about the latest job search techniques and coaching on how to make the most of transferable skills. Extra help for those who have been claiming jobseeker's allowance for six months was also introduced, including recruitment subsidies, work-focused training, support to become self-employed and opportunities to volunteer.
	Because the Government are determined that young people should not be permanently disadvantaged by the economic downturn, from next year, all customers aged 18-24 who are approaching 12 months of their claim to jobseeker's allowance will have access to the Young Person's Guarantee. From January 2010, this group will be given access to either:
	A new job created through the future jobs fund;
	Support to move into an existing job in a key employment sector;
	Work-focused training; or
	A work experience placement through the community task force.
	Some elements of the guarantee will be available sooner. In October of this year the first jobs created by the future jobs fund will be available. Training to enter key employment sectors will be available in the autumn.
	Since last autumn, the Department has also quadrupled the available funding for the rapid response service, which provides advice and support to customers facing redundancy. It has extended local employment partnerships, the adviser discretionary fund and access to work so they are available to customers from the first day of their claim, alongside the support they receive from their Jobcentre Plus personal adviser.

Employment: Young People

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps her Department is taking to assist young people with no educational qualifications to enter employment.

Jim Knight: holding answer 3 July 2009
	The Department is committed to ensuring that all jobseekers, including young people, have the support they need to overcome their individual barriers to work. People who are unemployed and on jobseeker's allowance can undertake part-time education or training at any point in their claim providing it is for less than 16 hours per week. In some cases, customers can also undertake full-time training, particularly to address basic skills needs, if it is needed in order to gain the necessary skills to enter employment.
	Our current Integrated Employment and Skills trials are also testing approaches to ensure that every Jobcentre Plus customer has access to specialist skills services, including comprehensive skills assessments, to identify work related skills needs and recommend steps to addressing those barriers. The Integrated Employment and Skills service will be available across England in April 2010.
	In addition, young people in England who are under the notice of redundancy are now eligible for the additional training support available through the Response to Redundancy programme, funded by the European Social Fund and Train to Gain. Jobseekers who find themselves out of work for six months or more may be eligible for the work-focused training element of the six-month offer of extra support to all jobseekers.
	Furthermore, from January 2010 all young people approaching 12 months on jobseeker's allowance will be guaranteed the offer of either a subsidised job, training or meaningful activity. Training delivered under this offer will be tailored to the individual and relevant to the local labour market.

Ethnic Employment Taskforce

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the Answer of 8 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 833-4W, on the Ethnic Employment Taskforce, how much of the expenditure on the research project she expects to be attributable to  (a) fieldwork,  (b) analysis of data,  (c) production of the final report,  (d) administrative costs,  (e) staffing costs and  (f) other costs of each type; and what assessment she has made of the conclusions of the project.

Jim Knight: Although the internal cost structure of the Department for Work and Pensions research contracts is commercial in confidence, suppliers are chosen through procurement procedures that promote value for money.
	The Ministerial Ethnic Minority Employment Task Force will be considering the conclusions of the Racial Discrimination in Recruitment research, which are due to be published in the autumn.

EU Law

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the cost to her Department of the statutory obligations upon it in legislation introduced as a consequence of obligations arising from EU legislation in the most recent 12 months for which figures are available.

Jim Knight: It is estimated that no additional costs have been incurred by the Department as a result of domestic legislation made in the 2008-09 session to date, as a consequence of obligations arising from EU legislation.

Fetes: Safety

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance the Health and Safety Executive provides to the organisers of local fetes.

Jonathan R Shaw: HSE has not produced any specific guidance on local fetes. HSE has published the Events Safety Guide (HSG195) for those organising larger scale musical and similar events. This guidance is not directed at those organising small local fetes where the risk to public safety will be low, although organisers may find some of the advice contained within the guide useful.
	Local authorities have enforcement responsibilities at local fetes where there is an employment activity. They may also provide specific advice or guidance at a local level to organisers of fetes.

Financial Assistance Scheme

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the cost of  (a) consultants and advisers to and  (b) administration of the Financial Assistance Scheme has been in each year since its establishment.

Angela Eagle: The administration costs for the Financial Assistance Scheme Operational Unit are set out in the following table. The earlier years include one-off set-up costs.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Administration(1) (2)1.06 (2)4.730 (2)3.968 2.328 (3)2.283 
			 Consultants and advisers(4) 0 0.034 0.323 0.036 0.206 
			 (1) Excludes overheads such as estates which are met from DWP corporate budgets. (2) Includes one-off costs for implementation, which were not accounted for separately. (3) Excludes one-off costs for implementation of the December 2007 announcement and the transfer of the FAS functions to the Board of the Pension Protection Fund which are now accounted for separately-£2.621 million. (4) Includes the cost of consultants relating to policy development and the transfer of the FAS functions.

Financial Assistance Scheme

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what the decline in real value has been of Financial Assistance Scheme annuities since 1997; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  what estimate she has made of the average difference between Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) annuities and the expected annuities lost after 1997 by pensioners enrolled in the FAS; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Eagle: 666 schemes qualify for the Financial Assistance Scheme. Of these, trustees responsible for 446 schemes have bought or expect to buy annuities to cover all or some of scheme members' entitlements. These annuities may include provision for indexation, but detailed information on this is not currently available.
	The Financial Assistance Scheme will top up these annuities to 90 per cent. of expected pension at the date of wind-up, subject to an overall limit of £26,000, and regulations currently before Parliament would make provision for this top-up to include indexation on rights accrued after 1997.

Financial Assistance Scheme

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent assessment she has made of poverty levels among pensioners receiving Financial Assistance Scheme annuities; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Eagle: The Financial Assistance Scheme does not provide annuities.
	The information requested is not available.

Funeral Payments

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how long on average elapsed between her Department's receipt of an application for a funeral payment and any payment being made in the last period for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Goodman: The average actual clearance time for funeral payments processed in the financial year to date (April to June 2009) was 13.9 working days.
	 Notes:
	1. The information provided is management information. Our preference is to answer all queries using official/National Statistics but in this case we only have management information available. It is not quality assured to the same extent as official/National Statistics and there are some issues with the data; for example, they do not include claims which were processed clerically and have not yet been entered on to the Social Fund computer system.
	2. The clearance time for an individual funeral payment claim is measured in whole working days from the date the claim is received to the date of the decision, inclusive. The minimum clearance time recorded for an individual claim is one day, even if the claim is processed immediately.
	3. The average actual clearance time is based on all claims, both those where a payment was made and those which were refused.
	4. The average actual clearance time is based on claims processed during April to June 2009, not on claims received then.
	5. Once a decision has been taken, any payment is normally made straight away.
	 Source:
	DWP Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System.

Future Jobs Fund

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many bids from  (a) private companies,  (b) local authorities and  (c) voluntary sector organisations her Department has received for the Future Jobs Fund;
	(2)  how many bids her Department has received to deliver jobs through the Future Jobs Fund.

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many bids for funding from the Future Jobs Fund her Department has received; and when she plans to announce the successful bidders.

Jim Knight: We will be announcing details of the successful bidders later this summer.

Future Jobs Fund

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what resources her Department has allocated to each  (a) regional development agency and  (b) London local authority through the Future Jobs Fund.

Jim Knight: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave her on 14 July 2009,  Official Report, column 284W.

Future Jobs Fund: Wales

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to paragraph 30 of the Building Britain's Future document, Cm 7654, whether the £1 billion Future Jobs Fund to cover new jobs in areas of high unemployment applies to Wales; and by what mechanisms this fund is to be distributed.

Jim Knight: Employers in Wales are eligible to apply to the Future Jobs Fund. The definition of an area of high unemployment is one in which the unemployment rate is 1.5 percentage points above the national average. This flexible definition gives organisations the opportunity to develop bids with a narrow focus (such as wards) or a much broader base (such as partnerships of several local authorities).
	The Department for Work and Pensions will distribute the fund to successful bidders. The amount paid will depend on the details of the successful bid.

Future Jobs Programme

Terry Rooney: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans she has to evaluate the effectiveness of the  (a) Future Jobs Programme and  (b) Young Person's Guarantee.

Jim Knight: The Department for Work and Pensions will assess the implementation and impact of the Young Persons Guarantee, including the Future Jobs Fund. The key aim of the evaluation will be to understand the impact that the package has had on getting customers into sustained work and off benefits. We will monitor delivery against key performance and success measures during the programme and an overall assessment will be conducted at the programme's end.

Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether she plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer Adjournment.

Yvette Cooper: At present I have no such plans.

Housing Benefit

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will commission research into the effect of local housing allowance on vulnerable tenants who find it difficult to manage their personal finances.

Helen Goodman: The Department has committed to completing a review of the local housing allowance (LHA) scheme over a two-year period, starting from the commencement of its roll-out in April 2008. The aim of the review is to monitor the impact of the LHA at a national level, against the original LHA policy objectives.
	The review will include a qualitative study of tenants and advisers, which will consider the impact of LHA on tenants who find it difficult to manage their finances. Safeguards are in place that enable local authorities to make payments of LHA to the landlord in circumstances where tenants are in arrears or where they are likely to have difficulty in managing their rent payments.

Housing Benefit

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many applications for reassessment for housing benefit from  (a) council tenants,  (b) private tenants and  (c) housing association tenants were made in each quarter in each of the last five years.

Helen Goodman: The latest available information is in the table. The question asked for numbers of applications for reassessment for housing benefit. The figures supplied relate to the number of changes of circumstances reported by customers and decided by local authorities.
	
		
			  Quarter ending  Local authority tenants  Private tenants  Housing Association tenants 
			 June 2003 327,000 245,000 402,000 
			 September 2003 404,000 279,000 333,000 
			 December 2003 321,000 236,000 272,000 
			 March 2004 485,000 281,000 475,000 
			 June 2004 457,000 346,000 536,000 
			 September 2004 422,000 366,000 408,000 
			 December 2004 338,000 352,000 359,000 
			 March 2005 386,000 316,000 417,000 
			 June 2005 300,000 295,000 469,000 
			 September 2005 251,000 258,000 297,000 
			 December 2005 249,000 228,000 259,000 
			 March 2006 215,000 233,000 511,000 
			 June 2006 213,000 239,000 485,000 
			 September 2006 192,000 228,000 282,000 
			 December 2006 193,000 218,000 242,000 
			 March 2007 144,000 176,000 618,000 
			 June 2007 202,000 267,000 500,000 
			 September 2007 196,000 244,000 293,000 
			 December 2007 179,000 220,000 238,000 
			 March 2008 173,000 224,000 834,000 
			  Notes: 1. Figures are rounded the figures to the nearest 1,000. 2. Quarterly Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Administration Data Quarterly Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit administration data are supplied to DWP by local authorities and are un-audited.

Housing Benefit

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of applications for reassessment for housing benefit resulted in a reduction in payments in each quarter of the last five years; and what the average  (a) increase and  (b) decrease was in reassessed housing benefits claims.

Helen Goodman: The information requested is not available.

Housing Benefit: Morecambe

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency were in receipt of housing benefit on the latest date for which figures are available.

Helen Goodman: Housing benefit information is not available at constituency level.

Incapacity Benefit

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in  (a) the UK,  (b) Yorkshire and the Humber and  (c) York (i) applied for incapacity benefit, (ii) were required to attend a personal capability assessment, (iii) had their incapacity benefit refused following an assessment and (iv) had their incapacity benefit reinstated following a review or appeal in the latest 12-month period for which information is available.

Jonathan R Shaw: The available information covering Great Britain is provided in the following tables. Information is not available on the number of people who had their incapacity benefit award reinstated following a review or appeal in the last 12 months.
	
		
			  Incapacity benefit applications received June 2008 to May 2009 
			   Number 
			 Great Britain 385,699 
			 Yorkshire and Humber region 35,111 
			 York Benefit Delivery Centre 3,566 
			  Note:  York Benefit Delivery Centre processes incapacity benefit applications for North Yorkshire area.   Source:  Jobcentre Plus Management Information System Programme. 
		
	
	
		
			  People required to attend a Personal Capability Assessment from June 2008 to May 2009 
			   Number 
			 Great Britain 456,153 
			 Yorkshire and Humber region 43,292 
			 York 2,464 
			  Notes:  1. Not all applications for incapacity benefit will require a Personal Capability Assessment.  2. The figures given for York include all those postcodes commencing with YO.   Source:  Commercial Employment Provision. 
		
	
	The number of assessments is greater than the number of applications received for the same period. This is because it includes all current incapacity benefit recipients who were required to have an assessment.
	
		
			  Incapacity benefit claims terminated for failing a Personal Capability Assessment/Own Occupation Test between December 2007 and November 2008 
			   Number 
			 Great Britain 135,000 
			 Yorkshire and Humber region 13,900 
			  Notes:  1. Figures do not include any late notifications and are subject to change.  2. Figures rounded to nearest 100.  3. Figures for York not provided as nil or negligible due to small sampling size.   Source:  Department for Work and Pensions Information Directorate five per cent. Samples.

Incapacity Benefit

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recipients of incapacity benefit are receiving age-related additional payments; how many such recipients experienced a reduction in the monetary value of such additions in April 2009; and what the total monetary value was of the reductions in  (a) 2009-10 and  (b) 2008-09.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 13 July 2009
	 I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Hertsmere (Mr. Clappison) on 16 March 2009,  Official Report, column 866W.

Incapacity Benefit

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many work-focused interviews her Department plans to conduct for recipients of  (a) incapacity benefit and  (b) employment and support allowance aged between (i) 18 and 24, (ii) 25 and 49 and (iii) 50 and 64 years old in each of the next two years.

Jonathan R Shaw: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave to the right hon. Member for Maidenhead, (Mrs. May) on 23 February 2009,  Official Report, column 70W.
	From October 2009 we plan to provide three work-focused interviews to existing incapacity benefits claimants under the age of 25 in Jobcentre Plus-led Pathways to Work areas. We estimate that there will be 28,000 individuals in this group.
	From October 2010 we shall be providing existing incapacity benefit claimants aged 25 to 49 with three work-focused interviews as they migrate to employment and support allowance. Those aged over 50 will receive one work-focused interview, also on migration.
	New customers to employment and support allowance from October 2010 will receive quarterly work-focused interviews as well as the six-monthly work-focused interviews that current employment and support allowance customers receive.

Incapacity Benefit

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of claimants of  (a) incapacity benefit and  (b) employment and support allowance, are recorded as receiving the benefit and not making a job start after having attended (i) one work-focused interview, (ii) two or three work-focused interviews, (iii) between four and six work-focused interviews and (iv) more than six work-focused interviews.

Jonathan R Shaw: This information could be made available only at disproportionate cost.

Incapacity Benefit

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate her Department has made of the average cost of conducting a work-focused interview for a claimant of either incapacity benefit or employment and support allowance; and how many work-focused interviews have been undertaken for  (a) existing incapacity benefit claimants and  (b) new employment and support allowance claimants in each month of the last three years for which figures are available.

Jonathan R Shaw: The estimated cost of conducting a work-focused interview for a claimant of either incapacity benefit or employment and support allowance within Jobcentre Plus is £35. This does not include the costs of any subsequent work-focused provision that a claimant may be referred to.
	Information on the number of work-focused interviews conducted could be made available only at disproportionate cost.

Incapacity Benefit: Morecambe

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency received incapacity benefit in the latest period for which figures are available.

Jonathan R Shaw: The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of people receiving incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance in Morecambe and Lunesdale parliamentary constituency 
			   Number 
			 November 2008 4,600 
			  Notes: 1. Figures rounded to nearest 10. 2. Data cover quarter ending November 2008.  Source: Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data

Income Support Mortgage Interest: Applications

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many applications for income support mortgage interest (ISMI) payments have been made since November 2008; how many such applications were rejected; how many appeals against a rejection  (a) were made and  (b) resulted in an award; how many such appeals were not processed within the target time; and how many staff in her Department process ISMI payments.

Helen Goodman: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions asking how many applications for income support mortgage interest (ISMI) payments have been made since November 2008; and how many such applications were rejected; how many appeals against a rejection were made and resulted in an award; how many such appeals were not processed within the target time; and how many staff in the Department process ISMI payments. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Jobcentre Plus does record the actual number of claims received for ISMI, along with the number of claims awarded, and refused. Please find attached below this information by month, since November 2008.
	Jobcentre Plus does not capture the number of claims appealed or awarded on appeal, nor does it have a target time for appeals for ISMI. ISMI is not a separate benefit but rather forms an integral part of IS. The customer may not be eligible to claim ISMI from day one of their claim and as a result that element will be processed later in the life of that claim. This is why we do not capture the clearance time.
	Jobcentre Plus holds details of the staff deployed in processing new IS claims and those deployed in IS claims maintenance. Any activity relating to processing ISMI payments will be part of these roles and this lower level of staffing detail is not available.
	
		
			  Income support mortgage interest claims November 2008 - May 2009 
			   2 008  2009  
			   No v  Dec  Jan  Feb  Mar  Apr  2009  Total 
			 IS claims received (mortgage interest) 2,405 1,852 2,009 2,127 2,242 1,776 1,627 14,038 
			 IS mortgage claim processed 2,279 1,902 2,158 2,075 2,184 1,572 1,408 13,578 
			 IS mortgage claim awarded 1,515 1,339 1,657 1,549 1,718 1,244 1,149 10,171 
			 IS mortgage claim refused 764 563 501 526 466 328 259 3,407 
			  Source: Jobcentre Plus Management Information System Programme - extracted on 7 July 2009

Industrial Diseases: Compensation

Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much her Department has paid out  (a) under the provisions of the Pneumoconiosis Act 1979,  (b) in industrial injuries disablement benefit and  (c) under the provisions of the Child Maintenance and Other Payments Act 2008 to people with long latency diseases in each of the last five years.

Jonathan R Shaw: Information on the monies paid out in each of the last five years under the provisions of the Pneumoconiosis Act 1979 is in the following table.
	
		
			  Financial year  Expenditure (£ million, cash) 
			 2004-05 21 
			 2005-06 25 
			 2006-07 26 
			 2007-08 27 
			 2008-09 32 
			  Note: Figures rounded to the nearest £ million.  Source: DWP statistical and accounting data 
		
	
	Available information on the monies paid through industrial injuries disablement benefit on long latency diseases is in the following table.
	
		
			  Financial year  Expenditure (£ million, cash) 
			 2004-05 36 
			 2005-06 39 
			 2006-07 40 
			  Notes: 1. Figures rounded to the nearest £ million. 2. Industrial injuries disablement benefit expenditure on particular diseases is estimated using annual statistical data. Latest finalised annual statistical data are for 2006-07.  Source: DWP statistical and accounting data 
		
	
	The Child Maintenance and Other Payments Act 2008 made provision for the introduction of the 2008 Mesothelioma Scheme. This scheme was introduced in October 2008, and expenditure up to March 2009 was £5.5 million.
	 Source:
	DWP statistical and accounting data, excludes Northern Ireland payments under this scheme.

Jobcentre Plus

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Jobcentre Plus accredited providers there were in each year since 1997.

Jim Knight: Jobcentre Plus providers undertake accreditation if the value of the contract is greater than £50,000 (the level was initially set at £10,000 for 2005-06).
	We do not hold any accreditation information earlier than 2005.
	There are two types of accreditation: passed and passed conditionally. Passed means they meet all the criteria for accreditation and passed conditionally means they meet most of the criteria but must review and address issues before undergoing accreditation renewal the following year. The increase in the number of passed conditionally reflects changes in legislation which requires providers to take additional steps to bring current practices in line with the new requirements. The following table sets out the number of providers accredited in each year since June 2005.
	
		
			   Passed  Passed conditionally  Total 
			 June 2005 to December 2005 51 0 51 
			 January 2006 to December 2006 436 47 483 
			 January 2007 to December 2007 300 62 362 
			 January 2008 to December 2008 345 99 444 
			 January 2009 to 3 July 2009 (To date) 212 57 269 
			  Source: Commercial Directorate Solutions. 
		
	
	Accreditation is renewed annually. The renewal date is dependent on the original date of application. The figure for January to 3 July 2009 represents providers whose accreditation date has fallen within these months. Our current list of accredited providers totals 458 and therefore we will be expecting a further 189 providers to seek accreditation renewal in the remaining months of the year, notwithstanding any new applications or contracts being ended. Details of our accredited suppliers are published on Supplying DWP.
	To date, there has only been one provider who failed. Upon notification, the provider worked with the DWP and the accreditation contractor addressed the concerns and upon resubmission, they achieved accreditation. The Department when requested will assist providers with guidance to help meet the accreditation requirements.

Jobcentre Plus

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps Jobcentre Plus has taken to adapt its office space to accommodate increases in demand on its services arising from higher benefit caseloads.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what steps Jobcentre Plus has taken to increase its adept office space to accommodate increases in demand on its services arising from higher benefit caseloads. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Jobcentre Plus has reviewed the existing service delivery arrangements in meeting the challenge of the current economic climate and taking into account the planned welfare reform changes for the next two to three years. This review took into account the latest known information on the expected increase in business and customer volumes. This included the capacity for dealing with higher benefit caseloads.
	We have embarked on a programme of converting or extending our existing buildings where necessary. In addition, we aim to make our services more accessible to customers by providing a range of support through outreach, often delivering advisory and other support on partners' premises. We are supplementing these measures by operating extended opening hours in some locations where the need for this is identified locally. This includes some offices opening to the public on Saturday. We will only acquire new space where all other measures are insufficient.
	This programme is primarily focused on those buildings where we provide a face to face service for members of the public but we are also implementing solutions across our network of Benefit Delivery Centres and Contact Centres to ensure they are equipped to meet any capacity challenge.

Jobcentre Plus

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average annual cost of running a Jobcentre Plus office was in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the average cost of operating each office function was.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has asked me to respond to your question asking what the average annual cost of running a Jobcentre Plus office was in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the average cost of operating each office function was. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	The average annual direct cost of running a customer facing Jobcentre Plus office in 2008/09 was approximately £550k. The actual cost of running each office varies widely dependant on their size and the number of staff employed in the office.
	The majority of the direct costs are the salary costs of staff employed in the Jobcentre Plus office. Other costs associated with running the Jobcentre Plus offices such as estates costs, IT costs, payroll and financial services are dealt with nationally and are not included in the direct cost stated above.

Jobcentre Plus

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 65W, on Jobcentre Plus, which Jobcentre Plus offices were identified as facing capacity pressures;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 65W, which 18 Jobcentre Plus buildings have already had estates work undertaken to increase capacity; and 151 Jobcentre Plus offices have estates works planned.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions asking her, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2009, Official Report, column 65W to: list the Jobcentre Plus offices which were identified as facing capacity pressures, and; list (a) the 18 Jobcentre Plus buildings which have already had estates work undertaken to increase capacity and (b) the 151 Jobcentre Plus offices for which estates works are planned. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Our response to the current capacity pressure within Jobcentre Plus is progressing on a daily basis. The latest available information has been placed in the Library.

Jobcentre Plus

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 65W, on Jobcentre Plus, how much her Department has spent on converting or extending existing Jobcentre Plus offices where necessary; and what the total expected cost is of making all necessary conversions and expansions to Jobcentre Plus to cope with capacity pressures.

Jim Knight: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has asked me to reply to your question, pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 65W, on Jobcentre Plus, how much her Department has spent on converting or extending existing Jobcentre Plus offices where necessary, and what the total expected cost is of making all necessary conversions and expansions to Jobcentre Plus to cope with capacity pressures. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Jobcentre Plus are continuously reviewing existing service delivery arrangements in order to meet the challenge of the current economic climate and the planned welfare reform changes for the next two to three years. The latest reviews have taken account of the most up to date information on the expected increases in business and customer volumes.
	In the light of the unprecedented customer demand we have secured the required funding to convert or extend our existing buildings where necessary. In addition, we aim to make our services accessible to customers by providing a range of support through outreach facilities, often delivering advisory and other support on partners' premises. We are supplementing these measures by operating extended opening hours in some locations where the need for this is identified locally. This includes some offices opening to the public on Saturday. We will therefore only acquire new space where all other measures are insufficient.
	As at 30 June 2009, estates work had been undertaken and completed on 18 of our buildings at a cost of £1m, increasing our capacity to deliver additional customer service to the public. Estates work is planned on a further 151 buildings. This work is currently at an early stage and therefore the costs are not fully known.

Jobcentre Plus

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 65W, on Jobcentre Plus, if she will place in the Library a copy of each review conducted by Jobcentre Plus Customer Service Directors of their existing service delivery arrangements in meeting the challenge of the current economic climate and taking into account the planned welfare reform changes for the next two to three years, taking into account the latest known information on the expected increase in business and customer volumes.

Jim Knight: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2009, Official Report, column 65W, on Jobcentre Plus, if she will place in the Library copies of the reviews conducted by Jobcentre Plus Customer Service Directors of their existing service delivery arrangements in meeting the challenge of the current economic climate and taking into account the planned welfare reform changes for the next two to three years, taking into account the latest known information on the expected increase in business and customer volumes. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	The outputs from the review of existing service delivery arrangements conducted by Customer Services Directors were products produced purely for internal planning purposes and not in a format appropriate for lodging in the House library. When the proposals identified by the Customer Services Directors have been reviewed and approved, we will be able to provide detail of all sites where we will be implementing solutions to meet the current capacity challenge.

Jobcentre Plus

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 65W, on Jobcentre Plus, which Jobcentre Plus offices are operating  (a) extended opening hours and  (b) Saturday openings.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2009 Official Report column 65W on Jobcentre Plus if she will list the Jobcentre Plus offices which are operating (a) extended opening hours and (b) Saturday openings. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	The most recent list of Jobcentre Plus offices which are operating extended service hours and/or operating on Saturdays, along with details of our normal hours of business and the areas involved in the extended opening hours pilot have been placed in the Library.
	Our normal hours of business vary across the different services that we provide, predominantly on the basis of customer demand. Typically Jobcentres had been open from 9am to 5pm, except Wednesdays where we opened at 10am to allow for staff training and communications-a practice not uncommon in customer-facing organisations.
	We have been keeping that position under constant review since November 2008 in the light of rising workloads and taken a number of steps in response. Specifically we have:
	asked existing staff to work additional hours to allow us to provide extended service hours;
	ensured that all new recruits are on an 8am to 8pm contract to allow greater flexibility in our service hours;
	suspended the Wednesday late opening hour; and
	commenced a structured pilot of extended opening hours across our key service lines.

Jobcentre Plus

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Maidenhead of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 63-4W, on Jobcentre Plus, what the locations are of  (a) the 18 buildings that have already been modified and  (b) the 151 buildings her Department is planning to modify; how much has been spent on the 18 Jobcentre Plus buildings that have already been modified to increase capacity; and if she will estimate the cost of modifying 151 Jobcentre Plus buildings to increase capacity.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking her, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2009, Official Report, column 63-4W, to list the locations of (a) the 18 buildings that have already been modified and (b) the 151 buildings her Department is planning to modify; how much has been spent on the 18 Jobcentre Plus buildings that have already been modified to increase capacity; and for an estimate of the cost of modifying 151 Jobcentre Plus buildings to increase capacity. This is something which falls with the responsibilities to me as Acting Chief Executive.
	As at 30 June 2009, estates work had been undertaken and completed on 18 of our buildings at a cost of £1m, increasing our capacity to deliver additional customer service to the public. Our response to the current capacity pressure within Jobcentre Plus is progressing on a daily basis. The latest available information has been placed in the Library.

Jobcentre Plus

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what mechanisms are in place to monitor the accuracy of benefits and compliance advice given to Jobcentre Plus customers by Jobcentre staff; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what mechanisms are in place to monitor the accuracy of benefits and compliance advice given to Jobcentre Plus customers by Jobcentre staff. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	All Jobcentre Plus staff are extensively trained to provide accurate advice to customers. If customers in receipt of benefits administered by Jobcentre Plus have an enquiry about their benefit, they are asked to contact either the Benefit Enquiry Line, the Benefit Delivery Centre handling their claim or their local Jobcentre Plus office. Customers in receipt of work-focussed benefits have regular and close contact with Jobcentre Plus to ensure their benefits are, and continue to be, paid accurately and that they are aware and reminded of their responsibilities during the lifetime of their claim. For example, customers who want to claim Jobseeker's Allowance will discuss and agree with a personal adviser realistic and achievable job goals and appropriate steps to offer the best chance of finding work. The information is recorded in the Jobseeker's Agreement, which provides a record of the advice given and forms the basis of future discussions every time someone attends the Jobcentre Plus office.
	As part of Jobcentre Plus' Customer Service Target, we check the accuracy of information given to customers via a Mystery Shopping programme. The Mystery Shoppers, working on behalf of Jobcentre Plus, pose a range of scenarios to our staff both in person and via telephone calls to test this knowledge. The scenarios cover a wide range of Jobcentre Plus services including benefits advice. These checks include ensuring that the information provided on our websites is accurate and up to date.
	We also have a Quality Assurance Framework in place within Jobcentres to monitor and assess the quality of service given to our customers. It sets out the standards and skills individuals are expected to demonstrate when dealing with customers and explains the procedures to follow to achieve them. The Quality Assurance Framework is supplemented by a rigorous monitoring and checking regime which scrutinises the accuracy of a sample of claims on a monthly basis.

Jobcentre Plus: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many  (a) permanent,  (b) temporary and  (c) agency staff were employed in (i) benefit delivery centres and (ii) customer-facing jobcentres operated by Jobcentre Plus in each constituency in Essex in (A) each year since 2001 and (B) each of the last 24 months.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking how many (a) permanent, (b) temporary and (c) agency staff were employed in (i) benefit delivery centres and (ii) customer-facing jobcentres operated by Jobcentre Plus in each constituency in Essex in (A) each year since 2001 and (B) each of the last 24 months. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Available information is shown in the tables attached at Annex A and B.
	Information has been provided on how many staff we have employed in total in our Essex Jobcentres and Basildon Benefit Delivery Centre from December 2007 to June 2009. We have not used any agency staff in Essex between December 2007 and June 2009.
	I am unable to provide the information you have requested from 2001 onwards as we do not hold it for this period. I am also unable to provide you with details for each constituency in Essex as we do not record information for these specific locations.
	We have ongoing plans to recruit further staff for our Jobcentres in Southend, Rayleigh, Canvey Island, Basildon, Brentwood, Grays and Harlow and for our Benefit Delivery Centre in Basildon. In addition to the staff employed in our Jobcentres and Basildon Benefit Delivery Centre, we also employ a number of specialist staff who help support our customers within the Office of the District Manager for Jobcentre Plus in Essex.
	Neil Brettell, District Manager for Essex, will be happy to talk to you further if you have any further questions. Neil can be contacted on 01245 214242, by post at Government Buildings, Beeches Road, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 2RT or by email at:
	Neil.Brettell@jobcentreplus.gsi.gov.uk
	
		
			  Annex A: n umber of staff employed in customer services directorate/Essex jobcentres from December 2007 to June 2009. 
			   Fixed term  Permanent  Temporary  Total 
			 December 2007 0 587.17 0 587.17 
			 January 2008 0 586.83 0 586.83 
			 February 2008 0 579.17 0 579.17 
			 March 2008 3.64 580.3 0 583.94 
			 April 2008 4.64 583.58 0 588.22 
			 May 2008 4.64 578.95 0 583.59 
			 June 2008 4.64 578.51 9.79 592.94 
			 July 2008 18.66 579.86 14.06 612.58 
			 August 2008 28.24 580.5 19.06 627.8 
			 September 2008 27.58 582.73 14 624.31 
			 October 2008 28.58 580.01 17 625.59 
			 November 2008 25.58 577.55 19.6 622.73 
			 December 2008 19 585.18 21.6 625.78 
			 January 2009 12 600.58 24.63 637.21 
			 February 2009 9 606.22 24.63 639.85 
			 March 2009 7 612.99 28.03 648.02 
			 April 2009 6 626.56 23.03 655.59 
			 May 2009 28 628.26 22.03 678.29 
			 June 2009 133.78 632 19 784.78 
			  Note:  Figures are whole time equivalents, not actual staff in post.  Source:  Dataview. 
		
	
	
		
			  Annex B: number of staff employed in Basildon benefit delivery centre from December 2007 to June 2009. 
			   Fixed term  Permanent  Temporary  Total 
			 December 2007 1 437.23 3 441.23 
			 January 2008 1 426.08 3 430.08 
			 February 2008 1 424.66 3 428.66 
			 March 2008 0 435.68 1 436.68 
			 April 2008 0 431.14 1 432.14 
			 May 2008 0 415.47 1 416.47 
			 June 2008 0 411.33 1 412.33 
			 July 2008 10 405.48 10.98 426.46 
			 August 2008 12.91 410.64 4.98 428.53 
			 September 2008 11.91 410.03 3.98 425.92 
			 October 2008 13.91 417.83 0 431.74 
			 November 2008 19.87 411.42 1 432.29 
			 December 2008 19.45 415.19 1 435.64 
			 January 2009 19.43 424.43 1 444.86 
			 February 2009 11.52 427.4 1 439.92 
			 March 2009 27.61 501.91 1 530.52 
			 April 2009 37.72 493.48 1 532.2 
			 May 2009 71.75 493.65 0 565.4 
			 June 2009 73.37 488.9 0 562.27 
			  Note: Figures are whole time equivalents, not actual staff in post.  Source: Dataview.

Jobcentre Plus: Finance

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much funding Jobcentre Plus has been given to deal with the increased numbers of unemployed people in the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has asked me to reply to your question asking how much funding Jobcentre Plus has been given to deal with the increased numbers of unemployed people in the last 12 months. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	The funding announced in both the November 2008 pre-budget report and Budget 2009, means that Jobcentre Plus budgets have increased by approximately £2,032m over 2009/10 and 2010/11 compared with original plans. The remainder of the funding to the Department will go towards other areas which are affected by the recession, such as employment programmes and funding to local authorities for the administration of Housing Benefit.

Jobcentre Plus: Greater London

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many  (a) benefit delivery centres and  (b) customer-facing jobcentres were operated by Jobcentre Plus in each London borough in each of the last 24 months.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking how many (a) benefit delivery centres and; (b) customer-facing jobcentres were operated by Jobcentre Plus in each London borough in each of the last 24 months. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Tables showing the number of offices in which benefits were processed, and the number of Jobcentres, in each London Borough from July 2007 to June 2009 have been placed in the Library.

Jobcentre Plus: Greater London

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many  (a) permanent,  (b) temporary and  (c) agency staff were employed in (i) benefit delivery centres and (ii) customer-facing jobcentres operated by Jobcentre Plus in each London borough in (A) each year since 2002 and (B) each of the last 24 months;
	(2)  when she plans to answer Question 276546, on Jobcentre Plus, tabled on 15 May 2009.

Jim Knight: holding answer 20 May 2009
	 The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking how many (a) permanent (b) temporary and (c) agency staff were employed in (i) benefit delivery centres and (ii) customer-facing jobcentres operated by Jobcentre Plus in each London borough in (A) each year since 2002 and (B) each of the last 24 months. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Tables giving an estimate of Benefit Delivery Centre and Jobcentre staffing in each London Borough from December 2007 to April 2009 have been placed in the Library as Annexes 1 to 17.
	Jobcentre Plus in London did not employ any agency staff during the period in question.

Jobcentre Plus: Interviews

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance her Department has issued to Jobcentre Plus on the duration of jobseekers' interviews; whether jobseeker interviews are required to be on a one-to-one basis; how frequently jobseekers may be required to sign on; what recent guidance her Department has issued to Jobcentre Plus on caseload management; and if she will place in the Library a copy of this guidance.

Jim Knight: Jobcentre Plus operations are built around the need to provide the support that people need to help them find work as soon as possible.
	The average length of the initial interview is 40 minutes, but the actual time taken will vary depending upon individual customer needs. Everyone making a claim for jobseeker's allowance (JSA) has this one-to-one interview with a personal adviser to assess their circumstances, discuss and set in place a jobseeker's agreement and make sure they have information about and access to the help they need. The interview may be shorter if, for example, some of the information is already held.
	Following the initial interview, jobseekers are normally then asked to attend the local office fortnightly for a jobsearch review. The average time allocation for these contacts is 7.5 minutes, but the actual time taken will vary depending upon customer needs. For those people who do not find work quickly, a review is undertaken at or around 13 weeks. The average length of this review is 20 minutes, but the method of delivery and duration of contact will vary, depending upon individual needs. Further interviews take place if the claim lasts longer and interviews taking place at key points such as six months would be of a longer duration.
	Detailed guidance has been issued to Jobcentre Plus staff, particularly in view of the introduction of new services in April. Copies have been placed in the Library.

Jobcentre Plus: Manpower

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the proportion of Jobcentre Plus staff engaged in  (a) administering benefits and  (b) helping jobseekers find employment.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what estimate has been made of the proportion of Jobcentre Plus staff engaged in (a) administrating benefits and (b) helping job seekers find employment. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	As at May 2009, Jobcentre Plus deployed around 31,300 full-time equivalents in activity relating to benefit processing and around 25,900 full-time equivalents in activity which helps job seekers find employment. These staff make up 43 per cent and 36 per cent respectively of the total Jobcentre Plus staffing. However, there are also over 5,200 full-time equivalents (a further seven per cent of total staffing) undertaking activity as contact centre agents. This activity covers a mix of benefit processing and job broking services.
	In addition, there are 8,026 carrying out operational business management and support roles and 1,780 are in supporting functions in National Directorates such as Finance, Planning and HR but we do not attribute them specifically to either benefit processing or job broking.
	We are continuously reviewing the levels of staffing within Jobcentre Plus to ensure that we maintain a service to our customers as workloads change.

Jobcentre Plus: Manpower

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what her most recent estimate is of  (a) the number of Jobcentre Plus staff required for the delivery of the jobseeker's regime under the Flexible New Deal and  (b) the number of Jobcentre Plus staff recruited to deliver the regime in 2009-10.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has asked me to respond to your question asking what her most recent estimate is of (a) the number of Jobcentre Plus staff required for the delivery of the jobseeker's regime under the Flexible New Deal and (b) the number of additional Jobcentre Plus staff recruited for this purpose. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive.
	Latest figures are for May 2009 and show there are 857 staff working on the Flexible New Deal.
	The Jobseeker's Regime and Flexible New Deal programme was developed so that it could be delivered on a cost-neutral basis, that is at no additional cost over and above the cost of delivering the existing New Deal for people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance.
	We are continuously reviewing the levels of staffing within Jobcentre Plus to ensure that we can provide an appropriate level of service to our customers as workloads constantly change. This means that numbers of staff on front line activities may be switched to meet workload demands.

Jobcentre Plus: Manpower

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the number of Jobcentre Plus staff required to deliver fortnightly jobsearch reviews as part of jobseeker's allowance; and how many of the additional  (a) 6,000 staff announced in the Pre-Budget Report and  (b) 10,000 staff announced in Budget 2009 will undertake fortnightly jobsearch reviews.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has asked me to respond to your question asking what estimate she has made of the number of Jobcentre Plus staff necessary to deliver fortnightly job search reviews as part of Jobseeker's Allowance; and how many of the additional (a) 6,000 staff announced in the Pre-Budget Report and (b) 10,000 staff announced in Budget 2009 will undertake fortnightly job search reviews. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive.
	As at May 2009, Jobcentre Plus deployed around 31,300 full-time equivalents in activity relating to benefit processing and around 25,900 full-time equivalents in activity which helps job seekers find employment. Following the announcements made in the Pre-budget report and this year's Budget our latest estimates are that Jobcentre Plus will have approximately 6,000 staff delivering fortnightly job search reviews. However, there are also over 5,200 full-time equivalents undertaking activity as contact centre agents. This activity covers a mix of benefit processing and job broking services.
	We are continuously reviewing the levels of staffing within Jobcentre Plus to ensure that we can provide an appropriate level of service to our customers as workloads constantly change. This means that numbers of staff on front line activities may be switched to meet workload demands.

Jobcentre Plus: Manpower

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff Jobcentre Plus have recruited to deal with the effects of the economic downturn.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide my hon. Friend with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking how many staff Jobcentre Plus has recruited to deal with the effects of the economic downturn. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	For the period from November 2008 to June 2009, Jobcentre Plus had recruited around 9,500 full-time equivalents to deal with the increased workloads resulting from the economic downturn. People who have been recruited are employed on a range of customer facing roles, covering benefit processing and job broking services.
	Further recruitment is currently ongoing. We are continually reviewing the levels of staffing within Jobcentre Plus to ensure that services to our customers are maintained as workloads change.

Jobcentre Plus: Pay

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been spent on  (a) Jobcentre Plus staff bonuses for staff in each district and  (b) Pension Service staff bonuses in each month of (i) 2009-10 to date, (ii) 2008-09 and (iii) 2007-08.

Jim Knight: The information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Jobcentre Plus: Tamworth

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many vacancies were advertised in the Tamworth Jobcentre in 2008; and for how long on average each such job was advertised.

Jim Knight: The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			   Number of vacancies advertised in Tamworth Jobcentre  
			  2008  Notified vacancies  Live unfilled vacancies  Median duration (days) 
			 January 431 675 47.3 
			 February 727 629 45.5 
			 March 753 707 54.9 
			 April 876 936 42.0 
			 May 650 576 40.0 
			 June 854 739 40.9 
			 July 665 684 46.5 
			 August 969 814 39.5 
			 September 701 782 39.0 
			 October 811 771 35.9 
			 November 713 604 39.3 
			 December 546 554 50.6 
			  Notes:  1. Interpretation of these data needs to take account of changes in recent years to Jobcentre Plus procedures for taking and handling vacancies. These figures are not fully comparable over time and may not indicate developments in the labour market. A more detailed explanation is available on the nomis website at: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/Default.asp 2. The stocks of unfilled vacancies reflect more accurately job opportunities available via Jobcentre Plus. In the case of unfilled vacancies, use of the figures on live vacancies is recommended (i.e. excluding suspended vacancies), and this is the default option. Live vacancies may still include some vacancies which have already been filled or are otherwise no longer open to recruits, due to natural lags in procedures for following up vacancies with employers.  3. Data are unrounded.  4. Comprehensive estimates of all job vacancies (not just those notified to Jobcentre Plus) are available from the monthly ONS vacancy survey since April 2001, based on a sample of some 6,000 enterprises. However, the ONS survey is currently designed to provide national estimates only.  5. Median duration is measured in days and is the median time between notification and closure of vacancies.  Source:  Jobcentre Plus Labour Market System.

Jobcentre Plus: Telephone Services

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will instruct Jobcentre Plus to permit its telephones to be used for calls made for the purpose of applying for a crisis loan.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is the responsibility of the acting chief executive, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking if she will instruct Jobcentre Plus to permit its telephones to be used for calls made for the purpose of applying for a crisis loan. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Our position on this issue was set out for the Work and Pensions Select Committee in Neil Couling's letter to Terry Rooney dated 9 July 2008. A copy of that letter is attached.
	I hope this is helpful.
	 Letter from Neil Couling:
	Early in the New Year, I wrote to you outlining a pilot we were running to allow vulnerable customers to make applications for Social Fund Crisis Loans (SFCLs) using Customer Access Points (CAPs or 'warm phones') in Jobcentres. This follows the Committee's recommendation in its 2006-07 report. We worked with the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) Union to agree these arrangements. The small pilot ran from 7 January to 28 March this year and we have now completed the evaluation, which I have attached.
	Our current procedures mean that customers cannot use warm phones to make SFCL applications. This is because a customer could receive an adverse decision in an unscreened area and so, if aggrieved, could pose a risk to themselves, staff or other customers. This control measure is a key part of our agreement with the PCS on working in unscreened offices. The result is that, at present, some vulnerable customers-who use a face-to-face procedure instead of our normal channel of making a telephone claim from home-are referred to a screened office to receive their decision (be that favourable or adverse).
	The main replacement control measures for the pilot, agreed with the PCS, meant that Floor Managers and Customer Care Officers were always aware of calls of this type, and-crucially-that the Decision Maker in the Benefit Delivery Centre would contact the Jobcentre on a dedicated telephone line if the application was about to be refused. This allows the Floor Manager and Customer Care Officers to be in place to offer any further assistance to the customer on receipt of an adverse decision. Given the potential risks, and PCS concerns to such an approach, we agreed to a small pilot which ran in five offices in Northumbria.
	During the three month pilot seven customers used the service, compared to two using the existing face-to-face service in the preceding 14 months in the whole Northumbria District. Four were awarded a Crisis Loan and there were no incidents of unacceptable customer behaviour linked to any of these customers.
	The qualitative evaluation revealed that Jobcentre staff locally were confident that this service was restricted to appropriately vulnerable customers; that they enjoyed the discretion and flexibility this service provided; and, that it was an improvement in access for those customers who are currently turned away or sent to a screened office for a face-to-face decision.
	Whilst this pilot has been encouraging, we do not feel that it provides sufficiently strong evidence to roll out nationally-volumes were low and, as the evaluation report reveals, the effectiveness of the alternative control measures was not properly tested. To ensure that this is a safe and effective approach we intend to pilot the scheme again in London, with the option to roll out nationally if it is successful.
	We will consult the Public and Commercial Services Union on this basis. We also need to develop the approach along side Accessing Jobcentre Customer Services (AJCS), which seeks to enhance services for vulnerable customers, and any changes to the Social Fund. Given these factors, and the full change agenda facing Jobcentre Plus-including the rollout of the Employment and Support Allowance-we are looking to run this large scale pilot as early as is practicable 2009.
	I hope this is helpful and that you are encouraged, as we are, by these early findings. I will update you as the pilot progresses and am happy to answer any question that you or the Committee have in the meantime.

Jobcentre Plus: Training

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Jobcentre Plus  (a) personal advisers and  (b) other staff have (i) retrained and (ii) received supplementary training to manage new claims for benefits in the last 12 months.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked the Acting Chief Executive to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking how many Jobcentre Plus  (a) personal advisers and  (b) other staff have (i) retrained and (ii) received supplementary training to manage new claims for benefits in the last 12 months. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Although I am in a position to provide you with the overall amount of training provided to Jobcentre Plus staff to manage new claims for benefits in the last twelve months, current management information systems in place across the Department do not allow me to provide the level of breakdown requested.
	I have therefore broken down the information requested to cover learning relating to action for New Jobseekers Interviews, and the three key benefits, Income Support, Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) and Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).
	Over the last twelve months 2,040 Jobcentre Plus members of staff are recorded as having completed learning relating to action for New Jobseekers Interviews. A supplementary refresher event for New Jobseeker Interviews has also been developed and available in Jobcentre Plus since April 2009.
	In addition the following numbers of staff have received training over the last twelve months to manage new claims:
	113 have received Income Support / Incapacity Benefit training;
	2,067 have received JSA Training; and
	16,456 have received ESA training.

Jobcentre Plus: Training

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what training is provided to Jobcentre Plus staff to assist graduate and highly-skilled jobseekers; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what training is provided to Jobcentre Plus staff to assist graduate and highly skilled jobseekers. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	All Jobcentre Plus Personal Advisers receive a full programme of training to support all customers in identifying job goals. This training is designed to deal with all of our individual customers holistically rather than segmented according to background, so learning products do not include specific training aimed at assisting graduate or highly skilled jobseekers to find work. In helping customers to achieve their job goals, Personal Advisors do take into account the customer's circumstances, such as skills and qualifications to direct them to the appropriate resources and support.
	As you will be aware, the Government has introduced new help for professional and executive jobseekers and has a cross Government package of support for graduates. Jobcentre Plus advisers have been trained on these offerings and also how best to signpost customers to other sources of help tailored to their needs.

Jobcentre Plus: Training

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what training  (a) personal advisers,  (b) decision-makers,  (c) disability benefit advisers and  (d) specialist lone parents advisers who are (i) new and (ii) existing Jobcentre Plus employees are required to complete on benefit rules and compliance before starting their positions; whether such people are required to take refresher training in benefit rules and compliance; and what criteria are used to assess their competency.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions asking; how many hours of training would-be (a) personal advisers, (b) decision-makers, (c) disability benefit advisers and (d) specialist lone parents advisers who are (i) new and (ii) existing Jobcentre Plus employees are required to complete before starting their positions.
	what training (a) personal advisers, (b) decision-makers, (c) disability benefit advisers and (d) specialist lone parents advisers who are (i) new and (ii) existing Jobcentre Plus employees are required to complete on benefit rules and compliance before starting their positions; whether such people are required to take refresher training in benefit rules and compliance; and what criteria are used to assess their competency.
	This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	New personal advisers, decision makers, disability benefit advisers and specialist lone parents advisers all undertake 60 hours of induction/foundation learning. In addition to this, personal advisers receive 130 hours of training, disability benefit advisers receive 59 hours of training and specialist lone parent advisers receive 47.5 hours of training before starting their positions. Decision makers receive 65 hours of foundation learning and generic decision making training before starting their position. Dependent upon the business area, decision makers may also be required to complete supplementary training in that particular field of expertise.
	With regard to benefit rules and compliance, new Jobcentre Plus personal advisers, disability benefit advisers and specialist lone parent advisers are required to complete two hours of benefit rules and compliance training.
	The required training for benefit rules and compliance for decision makers is dependent upon the business areas and decision making responsibilities that they are to undertake. For example, for Jobseeker's Allowance there are 145 hours of benefit rules and compliance learning available from which a decision maker would complete the individual products appropriate to their allocated decision making duties.
	The amount of training, including benefit rules and compliance, required for existing Jobcentre Plus employees is dependant upon their existing skills and knowledge. In consultation with line managers, employees would assess their existing skills and knowledge and identify the appropriate training products they would require to take up a change of job role. These training products would be from the same product set as that for new staff.
	The need for refresher training on benefit rules and compliance is dependant upon the employee's performance and would be assessed in consultation with their line managers.
	Line managers observe personal adviser interviews against a set of behaviour criteria set out in the Jobcentre Plus Quality Assessment Framework to identify any further learning needs. Accuracy and quality checks are carried out on decision makers and these support the line managers in identifying further learning requirements.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the number of people who will have been claiming income-based jobseeker's allowance for  (a) six months or more,  (b) 12 months or more,  (c) 18 months or more and  (d) 24 months or more in (i) 2009-10 and (ii) 2010-11 on the basis of the assumptions about unemployment made in respect of the 2009 Budget.

Jim Knight: holding answer 1 June 2009
	 The Department has not estimated the number of people who will have been claiming the income-based component of jobseeker's allowance for different durations.

Jobseeker's Allowance

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average number of days between the completion of processing of an application for jobseeker's allowance (JSA) and the first payment of JSA was in the latest period for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is the responsibility of the acting chief executive, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what the average number of days between the completion of processing of an application for Jobseeker's Allowance and the first payment of Jobseeker's Allowance was in the latest period for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	The current Jobcentre Plus target for the average actual clearance time taken to process Jobseeker's Allowance claims is 11.5 days. This time is calculated across an average of all the claims cleared in any given month looking at the date the customer first contacted Jobcentre Plus or the customer's first day of unemployment, whichever is the later. The end date is the date a formal decision is made on the claim and a notification is issued to the customer on entitlement.
	The current year to date achievement is 9.7 days to May 2009. The first payment of Jobseeker's Allowance is issued to the customer as soon as entitlement is decided.

Jobseeker's Allowance: Young People

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many  (a) 18 and  (b) 19 year-old jobseeker's allowance claimants reported having been unemployed for over 12 months on initial application in the latest period for which information is available; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The information is not available.

Members: Correspondence

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State will respond to the letter from the right hon. Member for West Derbyshire of 30 April 2009 on statutory adoption pay.

Patrick McFadden: I have been asked to reply.
	My noble Friend, the Minister for Postal Affairs and Employment Relations, responded to the right hon. Member on 16 July.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bury North of 10 March 2009,  Official Report, column 270W, on mortgages: Government assistance, how many claims for mortgage relief made with  (a) jobseeker's allowance and  (b) income support were (i) received, (ii) processed, (iii) awarded and (iv) refused in each jobcentre in each region in (A) January 2008 and (B) January 2009; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Goodman: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bury North of 10 March 2009,  Official Report, column 270W, on mortgages: Government assistance, how many claims for mortgage relief made with  (a) jobseeker's allowance and  (b) income support were (i) received, (ii) processed, (iii) awarded and (iv) refused in each jobcentre in each region in (A) January 2008 and (B) January 2009; and if he will make a statement. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Claims with a mortgage interest element are received by our Benefit Delivery Centres. I can provide you with data for both January 2008 and January 2009 by Benefit Delivery Centre, but not by Jobcentre as you have requested. Information by Jobcentre in each region could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
	For Jobseeker's Allowance, we collect data on claims with a mortgage interest element received and claims processed. Our benefit processing system for Jobseeker's Allowance does not record data about the number of awards and refusals.
	For Income Support, we record data about claims with a mortgage interest element received, processed, awarded and refused.
	The available information has been placed in the Library.

New Deal Schemes

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what changes have been made to the new Jobcentre Plus jobseekers' regime designed as part of the Flexible New Deal since it was first announced.

Jim Knight: The Government first announced their intention to introduce the Flexible New Deal in the July 2007 Green Paper 'In work, better off: next steps to full employment' [Cm 7130]. Following a period of consultation, the different stages of the Jobseeker's Regime were set out in the December 2007 DWP publication 'Ready for work: full employment in our generation' [Cm 7290].
	The Social Security (Flexible New Deal) Regulations 2009 (SI 2009 No. 480) were laid in March 2009 and the new regime was launched in phase 1 areas from 6 April 2009.
	Since April 2009, the Department has also introduced a number of measures to provide extra support to jobseekers in light of the economic downturn in addition to that already provided in the Jobseeker's Regime.
	On 6 April 2009, the Department introduced targeted support for the newly unemployed, including support tailored to professionals to enable them to refresh their job search skills.
	On the same day, the Department introduced an offer of extra support for customers who have been claiming Jobseeker's Allowance for six months (Stage 3 of the Jobseeker's Regime). This includes access to recruitment subsidies, work-focused training, help to become self-employed and volunteering opportunities.
	The Government also recently announced a Young Person's Guarantee: a guaranteed offer of a job, work-focused training or work experience placement for young jobseekers. This will be available from January 2010 to all Jobseeker's Allowance customers aged 18 to 24 who are approaching 12 months of their claim.

New Deal Schemes

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what criteria apply for jobseeker's allowance claimants to be fast-tracked to the gateway period of the Flexible New Deal;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of jobseeker's allowance claimants she expects to be fast-tracked to the gateway stage of the Flexible New Deal in each of the next 12 months.

Jim Knight: As part of the refreshed jobseeker's allowance regime, some jobseekers will be fast-tracked to the supported jobsearch stage (Stage 3) of the regime at the start of their claim. Stage 3 is normally reserved for customers out of work for six months, and comprises more intensive adviser-led support, and access to the new package of support at six months, comprising recruitment subsidies, help to become self-employed, and access to training and volunteering opportunities.
	The refreshed jobseeker's allowance regime was launched in Phase One areas in April this year; we expect it to be launched in Phase Two areas in April next year.
	Fast-tracking applies to:
	Customers with a history of claiming benefit who have spent 22 of the previous 24 months on Jobseeker's Allowance;
	18 year olds who have been continuously out of employment, education or training for six months prior to making a claim, or whose period out of employment, education or training and Jobseeker's Allowance claim together reach six months.
	Other disadvantaged groups can volunteer for early entry to Stage 3, at adviser discretion and subject to capacity.
	We have placed no limit on the number of people fast-tracking will apply to, nor are we subject to limitations about the overall proportion of customers to whom the measures will apply.

New Deal Schemes: Hemsworth

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people aged between 18 and 24 in Hemsworth constituency have received assistance under the New Deal since 1997; and how many such people have moved into employment.

Jim Knight: People aged between 18 and 24 can benefit from the New Deal for Young People, which was rolled out nationally from April 1998. In the Hemsworth constituency 2,430 young people entered the New Deal up to February 2009 and 1,640 people went on from the New Deal into work up to November 2008, which is the latest date for which data are available.
	 Note
	Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
	 Source
	Department for Work and Pensions, Information Directorate

New Deal Schemes: Lancashire

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency have received assistance through New Deal schemes in each year since 1997.

Jim Knight: The information requested is in the following tables:
	
		
			  Time series of starters (individuals), people starting all new deal programmes in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency 
			   Number of people 
			 1998 320 
			 1999 500 
			 2000 440 
			 2001 460 
			 2002 540 
			 2003 530 
			 2004 550 
			 2005 590 
			 2006 580 
			 2007 820 
			 2008 870 
			 2009 150 
			  Notes:  1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  2. Parliamentary constituency (post May 2005) is allocated using the ONS Postcode Directory and customer's postcode.  3. The new deal for young people pilots began in January 1998 and full national roll-out occurred in April 1998.  4. The new deal for 25plus programme was introduced in July 1998.  5. The new deal for lone parents programme was introduced in October 1988.  6. The new deal for disabled people was introduced in July 2001.  7. Data on new deal 50plus are available from January 2004 (programme was introduced in April 2000).  8. Data for new deal for partners are available from April 2004 (programme started in May 1999).  Source:  Department for Work and Pensions Information Directorate. 
		
	
	
		
			  Time series of jobs (individuals), people gaining a job for each new deal programme in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency 
			   Number of people 
			 1998 150 
			 1999 400 
			 2000 370 
			 2001 350 
			 2002 370 
			 2003 440 
			 2004 410 
			 2005 450 
			 2006 380 
			 2007 400 
			 2008 400 
			 2009 - 
			  Notes:  1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  2. Parliamentary constituency (post May 2005) is allocated using the ONS Postcode Directory and customer's postcode.  3. Jobs gained from April 2006 are identified mainly from the Work and Pensions Longitudinal study.  4. Jobs are allocated to the year that the job was gained.  5. Latest data available are to November 2008.  Source:  Department for Work and Pensions Information Directorate.

Nuclear Reactors: Safety

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment she has made of the implications for nuclear safety regulation of the civil nuclear industry of the comparative inspection effort expended for the performance of inspection per nuclear power reactor set out in the extract from Committee on Nuclear Regulatory Activities of the Nuclear Energy Agency working group on inspection practices published in annex F of the paper presented to the Health and Safety Executive Board in January 2009, No. HSE/09/13.

Jonathan R Shaw: It is correct that the number of HSE nuclear inspectors per nuclear installation is less than most other countries with active nuclear programmes. This is not a recent development and is a consequence of the goal setting nature of the UK regulatory system with its emphasis on ensuring that nuclear operators understand the hazards of their activities and how to control them, and take full responsibility for nuclear safety on their sites.
	Unlike many foreign regulatory authorities referred to in the Nuclear Energy Agency reference, HSE's nuclear inspector resources are not used to develop detailed regulations that prescribe how the nuclear operators should carry out their business. The nuclear installations inspectorate (NII) sets safety goals that are embodied in the licence conditions for each nuclear licensed site and require the operators to make and implement arrangements to meet these goals. UK law holds the nuclear operators responsible for safety. The NII's role is to ensure that they meet this obligation. The law, however, gives the NII the powers to intervene when and where appropriate, and seek further improvements in nuclear safety where reasonably practicable.
	The system requires highly experienced and technically qualified nuclear inspectors to operate efficiently and effectively. Government have agreed with HSE interim measures to ensure that the NII has the resources needed to continue to effectively meet current and future regulatory challenges. Furthermore, the Government are proposing, in their recent consultation document on the Restructuring of the Heath and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate, further measures to sustain this capability into the future.

Occupational Pensions

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the number of people who have lost part of their pension because the sponsoring employer is insolvent or no longer exists.

Angela Eagle: The information is not available in the form requested. However, such information as is available is as follows.
	The Government estimate that around 130,000 members of schemes with insolvent sponsoring employers will benefit from the Financial Assistance Scheme.
	In addition the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) protects members of eligible defined benefit pension schemes whose sponsoring employer experiences a qualifying insolvency event after April 2005. As at 30 June 2009, the PPF had 30,443 transferred members from 101 schemes. A further 193,228 members of 319 schemes remain in the PPF assessment period as of 30 June 2009 some of whom may have lost part of their pension. Since 2005, 32 schemes with 3352 members have wound up outside the PPF; these members would receive more than PPF compensation, but may not receive the full benefits originally promised by their scheme. A further 7,436 schemes were rejected as ineligible for assessment.

Pathways to Work

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many customers of Pathways to Work have been awarded Return to Work Credit where no job start had been recorded since the inception of the credit; and what the total monetary value was of those awards in each year for which data are available.

Jim Knight: holding answer 20 July 2009
	11,200 individuals found work as a result of Provider Led Pathways to Work. Of these 4,500 did not claim the Return to Work Credit, 3,230 claimed the Return to Work Credit and appear on HM Revenue and Customs data. 3,470 claimed Return to Work Credit but are not recorded as having a job on the HM Revenue and Customs database. A further 20 individuals, who had found a job through Workstep did not appear on either the Return to Work Credit or the HM Revenue and Customs database.
	137,110 individuals found work as a result of Jobcentre Plus Pathways to Work. Of these 54,830 did not claim the Return to Work Credit, 28,530 claimed the Return to Work Credit and appear on HM Revenue and Customs data. 41,770 claimed Return to Work Credit but are not recorded as having a job on the HM Revenue and Customs database. A further 11,980 individuals who had found a job through Workstep or New Deal for Disabled People did not appear on either the Return to Work Credit or the HM Revenue and Customs database.
	There are several reasons, for example low earnings or self-employment, why someone in work should not appear on the HM Revenue and Customs database as this only covers those eligible to pay PAYE.
	The Return to Work Credit is a payment of £40 a week for up to 52 weeks if earnings are no more than £15,000 a year, gross, and where certain other eligibility conditions are satisfied. It is not possible to give monetary values in the form requested.
	 Note
	Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Totals may not sum due to rounding.

Pathways to Work

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what criteria apply in respect of Ofsted inspections of Pathways to Work providers; how many and what proportion of Pathways to Work providers have not met those criteria in each year since inspections began; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Department for Work and Pensions is currently working with Ofsted in England, Estyn in Wales and HMIE in Scotland to develop and pilot an inspection model, tailored to their respective inspection frameworks, to give assurance on the quality of Provider Pathways.
	Following this process, external inspection of Provider Led Pathways will start from the autumn in England and Wales; and from January 2010 in Scotland.

Pathways to Work

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many customers have made starts onto Pathways to Work since the programme's inception; how many have been recorded as making job starts; and how many customers who started jobs remain in employment.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 20 July 2009
	Official statistics on the number of participants in Pathways to Work are available up to January 2009, these are published at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/workingage/ib_ref_ p2w.asp
	Data on starts are available up to January 2009. Data on job entries are available up to October 2008. To allow for comparisons between starts and job entries over the same time period, starts to Pathways are shown up to the end of October 2008. Official statistics use both HMRC data and Return to Work Credit data to calculate how many Pathways customers have moved into employment. Information on job end dates can only be derived for individuals who have a matching employment spell on the HMRC data. Individuals who have started jobs in the six months prior to the end of October 2008 will not have had time to sustain their employment for at least six months. Numbers of individuals who remain in employment for six months on this database are shown in the table.
	
		
			  Number of individuals who started Pathways to Work and subsequently found employment 
			   Number of individuals  Of which:  are Return to Work credit only starts  Of which:  are job outcome target job entries  Of which:  are job outcome target job entries sustained for at least six months 
			 Provider - Led Pathways starts 101,230 - - - 
			 Jobcentre Plus Pathways starts 812,470 - - - 
			 Provider - Led Pathways job entries 11,200 3,470 7,720 1.170 
			 Jobcentre Plus Pathways job entries 137,110 42,190 83,360 39,230 
			  Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 2. If a person has started employment more than once in the period, then their most recent employment is counted.  Source:  DWP Jobcentre Plus and Provider-Led databases

Pathways to Work

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many customers who have made job starts under Pathways to Work have remained in employment for spells of  (a) under 13 weeks,  (b) between 13 and 26 weeks,  (c) between 26 and 52 weeks and  (d) over 53 weeks.

Jim Knight: holding answer 20 July 2009
	Official statistics on the number of participants in Pathways to Work are available up to January 2009, these are published at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/workingage/i_ref_p2w.asp
	Data on starts are available up to January 2009. Data on job entries are available up to October 2008. The following table shows the duration of jobs for all jobs up to October 2007. This is to allow sufficient time for a customer to have remained in work for 12 months. Official statistics use both HMRC data and Return to Work Credit data to calculate how many Pathways customers have moved into employment. Information on job end dates can only be derived for individuals who have a matching employment spell on the HMRC data. Numbers of individuals who remain in employment on this database are shown in the table.
	
		
			  Number of individuals with job entries in Pathways to Work areas and the employment duration of those which have an HMRC record 
			  Duration in employment  Provider-led  Jobcentre Plus 
			 Total job entries (up to end of October 2008) 11,200 137,110 
			
			 Total job entries (up to end of October 2007) n/a 90,070 
			  Of which:   
			 Are HMRC-recorded jobs n/a 51,330 
			 Under 13 weeks n/a 14,400 
			 13 to 26 weeks n/a 7,500 
			 26 to 52 weeks n/a 7,260 
			 52 weeks and over n/a 22,170 
			  Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. If a person has started employment more than once in the period, then their most recent employment is counted.  Source: DWP Jobcentre Plus and Provider-led databases

Pathways to Work

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate her Department has made of  (a) the number of customers which have started Pathways to Work and  (b) the proportion of Pathways to Work customers who have made recorded job starts in each year for which figures are available.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 20 July 2009
	Official statistics on the number of participants in Pathways to Work are available up to January 2009, these are published at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/workingage/ib_ref_p2w.asp
	Data on starts to Pathways are available up to January 2009. Data on job entries are available up to October 2008. As a result, the numbers who find employment within 91 days of their last contact with Pathways for the years 2008 and 2009 years are not fully complete as not all customers have had time to move into employment. Numbers of individuals who start Pathways and move into employment are shown in the following tables.
	
		
			  Number of individuals who started Pathways to Work and subsequently found employment in Pathfinder-led areas 
			   Individual Pathfinder-led starts  Number which find employment within 91 days of last contact with Pathways  Proportion of Pathfinder-led starts which entered employment within 91 days of last contact with Pathways (percentage) 
			 October 2003 to December 2003 n/a n/a n/a 
			 January 2004 to December 2004 n/a n/a n/a 
			 January 2005 to December 2005 n/a n/a n/a 
			 January 2006 to December 2006 n/a n/a n/a 
			 January 2007 to December 2007 1,960 650 33.3 
		
	
	
		
			  Number of individuals who started Pathways to Work and subsequently found employment in Jobcentre Plus areas 
			   Individual Jobcentre Plus starts  Number of which found employment within 91 days of last contact with Pathways  Proportion of Jobcentre Plus starts which entered employment within 91 days of last contact with Pathways (percentage) 
			 October 2003 to December 2003 6,160 1,330 21.6 
			 January 2004 to December 2004 72,920 14,490 19.9 
			 January 2005 to December 2005 104,390 17,410 16.7 
			 January 2006 to December 2006 209,020 35,450 17.0 
			 January 2007 to December 2007 301,060 56,490 18.8 
			 Notes:  1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  2. If a person has started Pathways or employment more than once in each year, then their first spell is counted each year.  3. A person is counted only once in each year, though they may appear in several years. As a result, the total number of individuals which have participated in Pathways since its inception cannot be derived by adding the number of individuals which have participated each year.  Source:  DWP Jobcentre Plus and Provider-led databases

Pension Credit

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans her Department has  (a) to introduce automatic payments of pension credit and  (b) to automate some parts of the pension credit claim process; what estimate she has made of the number of claimants affected; and what assessment she has made of the effect of such changes on levels of pension credit take-up.

Angela Eagle: We have no current plans to introduce wholesale automatic payments of pension credit. However, for existing customers moving from a means-tested working age benefit onto pension credit we are proposing to smooth the transition between benefits using the information already held, where it is considered safe to do so.

Pension Credit

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of  (a) new and  (b) re-assessed pension credit applications were processed in (i) 10 days and fewer, (ii) 11 to 15 days, (iii) 16 to 20 days, (iv) 21 to 25 days and (v) over 25 days in each of the last six quarters; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Eagle: We are unable to provide the level of detail requested. However the following table details the average actual clearance times (AACT) for pension credit, each year since 2007.
	
		
			  Pension credit clearance times 
			   2007-08  2008-09  June YTD( 1)  2009-10 
			 Target (days) (2)AACT 15 AACT 15 AACT 15 
			 Total Processed 280,097 298,075 74,894 
			 AACT (days) 15.6 15 15.7 
			 (1 )Year to date. (2 )Actual average clearance time.  Source:  Pension Service Legacy System

Pension Credit

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how long on average it took to process a claim for pension credit in each  (a) region and  (b) processing centre in each of the last six quarters; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Eagle: The following table gives the YTD pension credit AACT at the end of each of the last six quarters. The national figures for pension credit are under the heading 'The Pension Service'.
	
		
			  Pension credit claims AACT YTD by quarter 
			  Pension credit claims AACT  March 2008 YTD  June 2008 YTD  September 2008 YTD  December 2008 YTD  March 2009 YTD  June 2009 YTD 
			 The Pension Service 15.64 14.25 14.59 14.55 14.95 15.71 
			 Burnley Pension Centre 13.73 11.51 10.98 11.65 12.87 20.29 
			 Cwmbran Pension Centre 9.3 9.3 9.18 9.16 9.18 10.98 
			 Dundee Pension Centre 13.01 11.94 11.95 13.28 15.5 18.3 
			 Leicester Pension Centre 22.18 16.13 17.92 17.37 15.81 8.85 
			 London Pension Centre 14.37 12.45 12.45 12.78 13.09 15.45 
			 Motherwell Pension Centre 14.64 15.4 15.75 15.96 17.11 13.6 
			 Seaham Pension Centre 15.86 11.59 11.65 12.7 12.96 13.49 
			 Stockport Pension Centre 22.94 18.45 19.09 18.39 17.57 13.47 
			 Swansea Pension Centre 14.68 17.32 17.28 15.67 15.49 17.64 
			 Warrington Pension Centre 15.77 16.39 17.64 16.97 17.32 21.53 
			  Source:  MISP (Management Information Systems Program)

Pension Credit

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what her most recent estimate is of the number of male claimants of pension credit between 60 and 65 years old in each region of  (a) England,  (b) Wales,  (c) Scotland and  (d) Northern Ireland.

Angela Eagle: The requested information is in the following table. In Northern Ireland, pension credit administration is a matter for the Northern Ireland Assembly.
	
		
			  Pension credit case load: number of claimants who are male and aged 60-64 
			  Government office region  Number of claimants 
			 North East 13,630 
			 North West 30,820 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 20,810 
			 East Midlands 15,090 
			 West Midlands 22,070 
			 East of England 16,680 
			 London 27,240 
			 South East 21,250 
			 South West 16,510 
			 England 184,100 
			   
			 Wales 13,360 
			 Scotland 22,730 
			 Total 220,230 
			  Notes: 1. The case load figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding.  Source: DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data.

Pension Credit

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what her most recent estimate is of the number of claimants of carer's premium to those in receipt of pension credit in each region of  (a) England,  (b) Wales,  (c) Scotland and  (d) Northern Ireland; and what proportion of total claims of pension credit this represents in each case.

Angela Eagle: The information requested is in the following table. In Northern Ireland pension credit administration is a matter for the Northern Ireland Assembly.
	
		
			   Households in receipt of pension credit with an additional amount for caring  Households in receipt of pension credit  Proportion (Percentage) 
			  Government office region
			 North East 15,160 157,000 9.66 
			 North West 38,220 359,730 10.62 
			 Yorkshire and The Humber 23,540 261,350 9.01 
			 East Midlands 18,910 195,480 9.67 
			 West Midlands 29,120 278,930 10.44 
			 East of England 21,580 226,880 9.51 
			 London 15,960 294,480 5.42 
			 South East 20,240 286,680 7.06 
			 South West 20,780 226,080 9.19 
			 
			  England 203,500 2,286,610 8.90 
			 
			  Wales 20,060 163,410 12.28 
			 
			  Scotland 29,620 281,030 10.54 
			 
			 Total 253,200 2,731,370 9.27 
			  Notes:  1. The number of households in receipt are rounded to the nearest 10.  2. Totals may not sum due to rounding.  3. Household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household.   Source:  WP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data.

Pension Credit

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what estimate her Department has made of the number of people entitled to pension credit who have not claimed it in  (a) St. Ives constituency,  (b) Cornwall and  (c) England in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many people claimed pension credit in  (a) St. Ives constituency,  (b) Cornwall and  (c) England in each of the last five years.

Angela Eagle: Estimates of eligibility and therefore those who are entitled to pension credit but have not claimed it are not available below the level of Great Britain.
	The latest estimates of the take-up rates and the number of those entitled to but not receiving pension credit are published in the report "Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take-Up in 2007-08".
	The number of household recipients of pension credit in St. Ives parliamentary constituency, Cornwall and England are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  As at November each year:  St. Ives  Cornwall  England 
			 2004 5,810 27,580 2,200,630 
			 2005 6,060 28,260 2,266,420 
			 2006 6,140 28,740 2,290,810 
			 2007 6,150 28,830 2,287,390 
			 2008 6,170 28,900 2,286,610 
			  Notes: 1. The number of households in receipt are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. Household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household.  Source: DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data.

Pension Credit: Bexley

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in Bexleyheath and Crayford were in receipt of pension credit in the last 12 month period for which figures are available.

Angela Eagle: The information requested is in the following table:
	
		
			  Household recipients of pension credit in the Bexleyheath and Crayford parliamentary constituency 
			  2008  Number 
			 February 2,750 
			 May 2,750 
			 August 2,750 
			 November 2,770 
			  Notes:  1. The number of households in receipt are rounded to the nearest 10.  2. Household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household.   Source:  DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data.

Pension Protection Fund: East of England

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in  (a) Essex and  (b) the East of England have received Pension Protection Fund payments in each year since the fund's inception; and what the average size of payment was in each year.

Angela Eagle: The information is not available in the form requested. However, such information as is available is as follows:
	455 people in the East of England are currently receiving compensation from the Pension Protection Fund. Two people from the region were receiving such compensation in May 2007 and 111 people in June 2008.
	The national average annual payment of compensation is currently around £3,700; a regional breakdown of this figure is not available.

Pension Service: Internet

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on what dates since January 2009 the Pension Service's state pension forecast e-service pages have not had full service available; for how long on each occasion; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 The following table provides details of the occasions since January 2009 when the Pension Service's on-line state pension forecast service (RTPF) has been unavailable together with the duration of that unavailability. With the exception of the period from 30 March 2009 to 5 April 2009 when there was unprecedented demand for the service, downtime is normally as a result of planned maintenance work or the planned introduction of system improvements.
	
		
			  Advanced notification of RTPF downtime from January 2009 
			  Date of downtime  Time of downtime 
			 8 January 2009 (1)09.25-11.25 
			 13 January 2009 (1)10.21-11.28 
			 15 January 2009 21.00-01.00 
			 23 January 2009 to 26 January 2009 17:00-07:00 
			 25 February 2009 (1)21:00-21:20 
			 4 March 2009 00:01-06:00 
			 26 March 2009 to 27 March 2009 22:00-01:00 
			 27 March 2009 to 30 March 2009 12:00-07.00 
			 3 April 2009 to 4 April 2009 19:00-01:00 
			 30 March 2009 to 5 April 2009 (1)Intermittent 
			 5 April 2009 to 6 April 2009 11.30-07.00 
			 9 April 2009 (1)Intermittent 
			 1 May 2009 (1)12.33-14.18 
			 1 May 2009 to 2 May 2009 21.00-02.00 
			 5 May 2009 21.00-22.00 
			 6 May 2009 (1)08.37-09.00 
			 8 May 2009 (1)09.33-11.43 
			 16 May 2009 19.00-21.00 
			 22 May 2009 21.00-22.00 
			 22 May 2009 to 26 May 2009 21.00-07.00 
			 30 May 2009 17.00-22.00 
			 1 June 2009 01.30-02.00 
			 6 June 09 19.00-21.00 
			 9 June 2009 01.30-02.00 
			 12 June 2009 to 15 June 2009 17.00-07.00 
			 13 June 2009 18.00-21.00 
			 19 June 2009 to 29 June 2009 12.00-07.00 
			 25 June 2009 21.05-22.00 and 23.15-02.00 
			 26 June 2009 to 27 June 2009 18.00-06.00 
			 30 June 2009 22.00-23.00 
			 2 July 2009 22.00-23.00 
			 4 July 2009 21.00-00.00 
			 8 July 2009 21.00-22.00 
			 9 July 2009 22.00-23.00 
			 14 July 2009 22.00-23.00 
			 16 July 2009 22.00-24.00 
			 21 July 2009 22.00-23.00 
			 28 July 2009 22.00-23.00 
			 29 July 2009 00.01-06.00 
			 1 August 2009 to 3 August 2009 12.00-07.00 
			 (1) Downtime as a result of incidents from January 2009  Source: The RTPF system

Pensioners

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will publish an update of the data in figure 6.41 on page 293 of the report of the Turner Commission. A new pension settlement for the 21st century, on public expenditure on pensioner benefits as a percentage of GDP, for the period covered by the figure; and if she will publish the same information in the case of each age cohort.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 20 April 2009
	Such figures as are available were published in an update to the Pensions Reform Bill Regulatory Impact Assessment in May 2007. They can be found at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/pensions-reform-factsheet.pdf
	figure 14, p16. More recent figures, and a breakdown by age cohort, are not available, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	 Notes:
	1. Figures are consistent with DWP long-term projections published at Budget 2007.
	2. Post-reform figures are consistent with the pensions reform proposals at the time of publication (May 2007) and not necessarily with the Turner Commission report.

Pensioners: Social Security Benefits

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will estimate the cost to the Exchequer of assuming that any income earned from savings for the purposes of pensioners' eligibility for  (a) pension credit,  (b) housing benefit and  (c) council tax benefit is one per cent. higher than the Bank of England base rate (i) beyond and (ii) instead of existing capital disregards.

Angela Eagle: The following table shows the estimated cost of assuming different illustrative Bank of England rates of around 1 per cent. and 5 per cent. (averaged over a year), with and without the £6,000 capital disregard.
	
		
			  Estimated cost of tariff income set at approximately 1 per cent. higher than Bank of England base rate for pension credit, housing benefit and council tax benefit (2009-10 prices) 
			  Rate applied to income above the disregard  (i) Cost keeping current disregard (£ million)  (ii) Cost removing current disregard (£ million) 
			 2 per cent. 350 240 
			 6 per cent. 170 110 
			  Notes: 1. These estimates have been calculated using the Policy Simulation Model (PSM) which uses data from the Family Resources Survey (FRS). Estimates are subject to sampling and modelling uncertainty. 2. Income taken into account is rounded up to the next £1. 3. In column (i) the interest rate is applied to capital above the capital disregard. 4. Estimates do not include the cost of applying the rules to those in care/nursing homes. 5. Costs have been calculated against the current £6,000 threshold and not against the revised threshold of £10,000 that will apply from November 2009. 6. Costs have been rounded to the nearest £10 million.

Pensions Service: Incentives

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was paid in bonuses to  (a) directors,  (b) senior managers,  (c) specialist and delivery managers and  (d) executive support and administration staff in the Pensions Service in each of the last five years.

Angela Eagle: The information available is in the following table
	
		
			  Amount paid in bonuses for 2007-08 and 2008-09 
			  Bonuses (£) 
			  The Pension Service( 1)  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Directors 86,200 (2)- 
			 Senior managers 334,404 (2)- 
			 Specialist and delivery managers 592,836 313,510 
			 Executive support and administration staff 3,212,325 1,816,466 
			 (1) The Pension Service ceased to exist from 1 April 2008, when it merged with the Disability and Carers Service to form the Pension, Disability and Carers Service (PDCS). The figures entered for 2008-09 therefore represent bonuses paid to ex-The Pension Service staff who are now working within PDCS and broadly carrying out the same roles as in 2007-08. (2) There is not a directly comparable figure for Directors and Senior Managers in the new organisation, whose roles span the whole new agency.  Source: Resource Management (RM) System-Payroll

Pensions: York

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in  (a) the City of York local authority area and  (b) City of York constituency are in receipt of (i) the basic state pension and (ii) pension credit; and what the average weekly value of pension credit received is in each case.

Angela Eagle: The information requested is in the following table.
	
		
			   People in receipt of the basic state pension  Households in receipt of pension credit  Average weekly amount of pension credit (£) 
			 York local authority 36,900 6,680 45.41 
			 City of York parliamentary constituency 18,700 4,350 46.39 
			  Notes:  1. Numbers in receipt of basic state pension rounded to the nearest hundred.  2. The number of households in receipt are rounded to the nearest 10.  3. Household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household.  Source:  DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data and DWP Information Directorate 5 per cent. sample data.

Pilot Schemes

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what her Department's definition is of  (a) a pilot and  (b) a pathfinder programme.

Jim Knight: The Department has no formal definition for pilots or pathfinders. A pilot is considered to be a feasibility study or activity aimed at testing and evaluating the effectiveness of an initiative on a small scale before considering whether or not to implement it more widely. A pathfinder is an advance part of implementation when a decision has been made to deploy a project. Pathfinders are generally the initial phase in rolling out initiatives.

Poverty: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point constituency were in relative poverty in each of the last five years.

Angela Eagle: Poverty statistics, published in the Households Below Average Income series, only allow a breakdown of the overall number of people in relative poverty at Government office region level or for inner or outer London. This means information for Essex and the Castle Point constituency is not available.

Poverty: Parents

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what her most recent assessment is of levels of poverty among working parents who are not eligible for tax credits.

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	The child tax credit is a single, inclusive system of support for all families with children with an income up to £58,000. Families with a child aged under 16, or a young person aged 16-19 and in qualifying work, education or training, are eligible. Around nine out of 10 families with children are entitled to the child tax credit, there is little or no risk of poverty for families with incomes above the income threshold.

Recruitment: Discrimination

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what criteria applied in the selection of employers by her Department in respect of its recent study into discrimination in recruitment practices.

Jim Knight: Applications were made to advertised job vacancies. No specific employers or sectors of industry were targeted. Full details of the methodology of the research will be published in the autumn.

Remploy: South Yorkshire

Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the number of people who left the employment of Remploy in South Yorkshire in the last  (a) 12 months and  (b) five years who are in permanent employment.

Jim Knight: The number of people who left the employment of Remploy in South Yorkshire in the last 12 months is 31. In the last five years, 139 people left the employment of Remploy in South Yorkshire.
	Remploy has confirmed that it does not collate destination information for former employees, therefore, we are unable to provide information on how many are in permanent employment.

Self-Employed: Government Assistance

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how the self employment support available under the six month offer will differ from that offered under the New Deal for Self Employment;
	(2)  what estimate she has made of the number of people she expects to support into self-employment under the six month offer in  (a) 2009-10,  (b) 2010-11 and  (c) 2011-12;
	(3)  whether a last trading period will be available to a person receiving self-employment support as part of the six month offer;
	(4)  how much funding has been assigned to the self-employment support to be made available under the six month offer in  (a) 2009-10,  (b) 2010-11 and  (c) 2011-12.

Jim Knight: The self-employment element of the six month offer was introduced on 6 April 2009 and provides substantial advice and support to enable people to move into self-employment or to start their own business. There is an active programme of intensive support delivered by Business Link in England by Flexible Support for Business in Wales and by Business Gateway and Training for Work in Scotland. Those moving into self-employment will be entitled to a self-employment credit made up of 16 weekly payments of £50 to help with the transition into work and to underpin finances for the first few months of the business.
	There is no new deal for the self-employed although both the new deal for young people and the new deal 25-plus include options offering self-employment support. Under flexible new deal providers will also be able to provide self employment support. The new deal and six month offer routes into self employment are broadly similar. Both offer intensive support and advice to those who need it. To ease the transition into sustainable self-employment the new deals give customers an opportunity to undertake a period of test-trading for up to 26 weeks. Test trading enables the customer to begin work while remaining on benefits, whereas under the six month offer the self-employment credit is payable.
	We have anticipated the six month offer providing 500,000 opportunities for jobseekers and have made an investment in the offer of £0.5 billion. On current estimates we expect to be able to provide self employment support to 135,000 people.
	The offers are voluntary and are therefore demand led. The overall package is designed to be flexible and respond to customer needs. It is also possible that for any individual customer, a mix of offers may be appropriate.

Social Fund

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress her Department has made in its review of the Social Fund since the publication in November 2008 of its consultation document, The Social Fund: a new approach.

Helen Goodman: The Government's response to the consultation document 'The Social Fund: A New Approach-Response Document' was published on the Department for Work and Pensions' website in February 2009. A copy has been placed in the Library. It can be downloaded from:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/consultations/2008/sf-new-approach-response.pdf
	We anticipate that a further consultation document focused on the longer-term reform of the Social Fund will be published later this year.

Social Security Benefits

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many and what proportion of claims for  (a) budgeting loans,  (b) crisis loans,  (c) community care grants,  (d) jobseeker's allowance,  (e) incapacity benefit/employment and support allowance,  (f) income support and  (g) pension credit were processed within the target actual average clearance time in the last (i) 12 months and (ii) five years for which information is available;
	(2)  what the average clearance time for claims for  (a) budgeting loans,  (b) crisis loans,  (c) community care grants,  (d) jobseeker's allowance,  (e) incapacity benefit/employment and support allowance,  (f) income support and (g) pension credit was in cases where the claim was longer than the average clearance time in each of the last (i) 12 months and (ii) five years.

Jim Knight: The Jobcentre Plus target for processing jobseeker's allowance, income support and incapacity benefit claims is an average actual clearance time. Not all cases will be processed within the target for that benefit for a variety of reasons, but a calculation based on the average time taken across all claims processed within any given month is used as a measure of overall performance. As a result the Department's computer systems do not gather data in the way they have been requested.
	The average actual clearance time information for budgeting loan, crisis loan and community care grant applications that are processed outside of the standard is not available.
	Detailed information on clearance times for receipt of employment and support allowance is not available at the present time.
	Employment and support allowance replaced incapacity benefit for new claims from 27 October 2008. The latest quarterly data available are November 2008. More comprehensive figures are expected to be available when the February 2009 publication is produced in August 2009.
	The available information has been placed in the Library.

Social Security Benefits

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what start and end point is used to measure average actual clearance times for benefit claims.

Jim Knight: The Department for Work and Pensions administers a wide range of benefits. The clearance performance for some of these is measured in Average Actual Clearance Times (AACT). AACTs are calculated by dividing the total number of working days taken to clear cases by the total number of cases cleared. Details of the start and end point for each such benefit are given in the following table.
	
		
			  Benefit  Start point  End point 
			 Disability Living Allowance Date on which a properly completed claim pack is received within a Department for Work and Pensions office Date on which decision is recorded on the computer system and a notification of the decision is sent to the customer 
			
			 Attendance Allowance As above As above 
			
			 Carers Allowance As above As above 
			
			 Pension Credit Date on which all evidence is received to enable a decision to be made As above 
			
			 State Pension Date on which a properly completed claim pack is received within a Department for Work and Pensions office. For telephone claims this is the date on which the customer makes the initial contact As above 
			
			 Jobseeker's Allowance Date on which the customer first contacts Jobcentre Plus or the customer's first day of unemployment, whichever is the later As above 
			
			 Income Support Date on which all evidence is received to enable a decision to be made As above 
			
			 Employment and Support Allowance Date on which the customer first contacts Jobcentre Plus or the customer's first day of sickness, whichever is the later As above 
			
			 Incapacity Benefit Date on which a properly completed claim form is received within a Department for Work and Pensions office As above

Social Security Benefits

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many and what proportion of  (a) new and  (b) re-assessed council tax benefit claims were processed in (i) 10 days or less, (ii) 11 to 15 days, (iii) 16 to 20 days, (iv) 21 to 25 days, (v) 26 to 30 days, (vi) 31 to 35 days, (vii) 36 to 40 days, (viii) 41 to 45 days and (ix) over 45 days in each (A) region and (B) local authority in each of the last six quarters;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of  (a) new and  (b) re-assessed housing benefit claims were processed in (i) 10 days and fewer, (ii) 11 to 15 days, (iii) 16 to 20 days, (iv) 21 to 25 days, (v) 26 to 30 days, (vi) 31 to 35 days, (vii) 36 to 40 days, (viii) 41 to 45 days and (ix) over 45 days in each (A) region and (B) local authority in each of the last six quarters.

Helen Goodman: The information requested is currently not available.

Social Security Benefits

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions under what circumstances benefit claimants become Gateway outstayers.

Jim Knight: Gateway overstayers are New Deal participants who have not started a mandatory New Deal Option or Intensive Activity Period (IAP) before the end of the maximum period they can remain on a Personal Adviser caseload, which is 16 weeks. This can happen for a number of reasons, including:
	The participant has a firm offer of employment which is due to start shortly after the end of Gateway;
	The provision of the option/activity the participant was due to take up unexpectedly becomes unavailable;
	The participant is shortly due to emigrate to a country outside Great Britain;
	The participant has suffered the bereavement of a close member of their family;
	The participant is referred to an activity/option, but fails to start/attend.

Social Security Benefits

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what mechanisms are in place to monitor the effect of changing the backdating period for  (a) pension credit,  (b) council tax benefit and  (c) housing benefit in October 2008; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Goodman: All benefits are kept under review as part of our continual steps to make sure that everyone is getting all of the help that they are entitled to and we are always working to make our benefits more accessible.
	The Pension, Disability and Carers Service continues to promote take-up of benefits by pressing forward with data matching to identify those who might be entitled to, but not receiving pension credit, to conduct around 13,000 home visits for vulnerable customers each week, targeted local marketing and media campaigns and ever closer working with partner organisations.
	The claims process has been simplified and from November 2008 housing benefit and council tax benefit can be claimed over the phone alongside pension credit without the need to sign a claim form.
	We are also taking powers in the current Welfare Reform Bill to explore whether the Department can make better use of the information it already holds to improve the take-up of pension credit.
	As with pension credit, there are no specific plans to monitor the effect of the change in the time allowed for customers of pension credit age to claim housing benefit and council tax benefit.
	For working age customers, the Government have said that they will review the effect of the changes to the housing benefit and council tax benefit backdating rules for this group at the end of 2009. To do this we will use information from the Single Housing Benefit Extract, the Department's principal source of data for housing benefit and council tax benefit administration. In addition, two further methods will be used to inform a review of the policy at the end of 2009. First, the last half-yearly Omnibus Survey of local authorities contained questions which specifically asked them about the impact of these changes. Second, a survey has been running on the DWP website since 2 March, inviting stakeholders such as welfare rights agencies, local authority associations and housing organisations to submit their assessment of the effect of the new rules. This survey, which was devised with the assistance of key stakeholders and ends on 31 July, also includes a case study section so that respondents can contribute detailed information about the impact on individual cases.

Social Security Benefits: Contracts

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what reports have been compiled as a result of inspection and validation of contract compliance of her Department's external contractors working on programmes with benefit recipients.

Jim Knight: DWP contract managers undertake regular contractor performance reviews to monitor contract compliance. These then inform the preparation of the contractor's Performance Development Plan which sets out any remedial action.
	DWP officials also undertake independent monitoring visits to provide assurance that welfare to work contractors have appropriate financial controls and effective systems in place. A report of the findings is produced and forms the basis of an agreed action plan.
	The Department works closely with Ofsted in England, and Estyn in Wales, to produce an annual programme of inspection, ensuring all welfare to work contracts delivered by external contractors are inspected over the course of an inspection cycle. Reports from external inspections are in the public domain.

Social Security Benefits: Disabled

Jacqui Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people have received their health checks for invalidity benefits in each month since the introduction of the current health checks scheme; how many people were planned to receive such checks but have not; how long it is expected to take to provide checks to such people; and what the cost of doing so will be;
	(2)  how many people have come off each type of invalidity benefit in each month since the new system of health checks came into effect; and how many people remain on each benefit.

Jonathan R Shaw: The employment and support allowance was introduced in October 2008 and has replaced incapacity benefits for new customers. Alongside the employment and support allowance we have introduced a new more robust medical assessment-the work capability assessment, which focuses on what people can do, as well as what they cannot. The number of face-to-face medical assessments for all incapacity benefits completed by Atos Healthcare during each month is as follows:
	
		
			  Month  Assessments 
			 October 2008 55,487 
			 November 2008 52,352 
			 December 2008 45,904 
			 January 2009 53,050 
			 February 2009 49,453 
			 March 2009 68,051 
			 April 2009 63,315 
			 May 2009 64,106 
			 June 2009 66,575 
			 Total 518,293 
		
	
	The number of medical assessments undertaken was, until recently, below the number of cases coming in for assessment, but action has been taken which will by the summer raise these to a level that will clear the accumulated backlog. No additional payments will be made to clear overdue work capability assessments. The prices paid for assessments remain confidential.
	As at November 2008, there were 2,593,010 incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance claimants in Great Britain and, based on provisional figures, an additional 51,000 claimants of employment and support allowance.
	Figures for the number of claimants moving off incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance are only available for November 2008, one month after the work capability assessment was introduced. Figures for the number of claimants moving off employment and support allowance are not yet available but are expected to be released later this summer.

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment she has made of the effect of the Government's policies on welfare reform on families in Tamworth constituency.

Jim Knight: The welfare reform programme will allow us to bring about the most radical reform of the welfare state for generations. We remain committed to further reform to reduce welfare dependency and support more people into work, provide greater support and control for disabled people and strengthen parental responsibility.
	Since 2001, the Government have significantly extended and improved civil rights for disabled people in areas such as employment, education, access to goods and services and transport. Disabled people in Tamworth will have benefited from these improvements in disability rights. Similarly, families with severely disabled three and four year old children who are unable, or virtually unable to walk will have benefited from the Government's decision to lower the minimum age entitlement to the higher rate mobility component of disability living allowance from April 2001, whilst older and less well-off carers have gained extra help through the provisions within the national carers strategy. The Welfare Reform Bill currently before Parliament contains powers to increase choice and control for disabled adults, including disabled parents, enabling them to choose how certain state support is used to meet their individual needs.
	There are over 10 million people with a limiting long-term illness, impairment or disability in Great Britain making up 18 per cent. of the population. (Family resources survey 2007-08). The prevalence of disability rises with age; around one in 20 children are disabled, compared to around one in seven working age adults and almost one in two people over state pension age. All of these people would meet the definition of disability in the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA). The figures can be disaggregated to a regional level which shows that 23 per cent. of adults and 7 per cent. of children in the west midlands are disabled. (Family resources survey 2007-08).
	Information on the numbers of customers in Tamworth who are in receipt of disability living allowance (DLA) and attendance allowance (AA) is in the following table.
	
		
			  Tamworth 
			  November each year  DLA recipients  AA recipients 
			 2005 4,530 2,120 
			 2006 4,680 2,210 
			 2007 4,880 2,240 
			 2008 4,960 2,320 
			  Note: Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 10; some additional disclosure control has also been applied. Totals show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital.  Source:  DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 
		
	
	Through Jobcentre Plus, we are promoting work as the best form of welfare for people of working age. Since 1997, although the number of people claiming as unemployed in Tamworth has increased by 58 per cent., the number of long-term unemployed has decreased by 62 per cent. Since 1997 to November 2009 the number of people claiming income support for lone parents in Tamworth has decreased by 28 per cent. to 990.
	Our new deals have helped lone parents, the young unemployed, the long-term unemployed, disabled people, the over 50s and partners of unemployed people to move from benefit into work. Nationally almost 2.14 million people have been helped into work by the new deals, with over 3,000 in Tamworth alone.
	Significant progress has also been made in tackling child poverty. Since 1998-99 the number of children in relative low-income households fell by 500,000 from 3.4 million to 2.9 million on a before housing costs (BHC) basis.

Social Security Benefits: Fraud

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints her Department has received from benefit claimants over lost payment due to fraudulent use of chip and PIN cards in the last 12 months; what estimate she has made of the total monetary value of benefits stolen in this way; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Goodman: No such complaints have been recorded by the Department in the last 12 months. We would expect customers who were concerned about chip and PIN fraud to contact their account provider rather than the Department.

Social Security Benefits: Mental Health

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of people in receipt of incapacity benefit or employment and support allowance had their capability for work assessed as limited by mental ill-health in each year since 1997.

Jonathan R Shaw: The number of people claiming incapacity benefit has fallen in recent years. The number of people claiming for physical conditions has fallen significantly as a result of Government programmes to get more people who are able to work back into suitable employment. The number of people claiming incapacity benefit for mental health conditions has remained broadly unchanged over the last few years.
	The Government are developing more action to help those with mental health conditions get back into work including a new Mental Health and Employment strategy due to be published in the autumn and the Perkins review on how we help people with mental health conditions back into work.
	We have replaced the old system of incapacity benefits with the more work-focused employment and support allowance to engage with people more actively and to ensure they are aware of opportunities available.
	The essential rule for entitlement to either incapacity benefit or employment and support allowance does not depend on an individual's diagnosis or condition, but on the effect that condition, or a combination of conditions, has on each individual's mental and physical function.
	Information for employment and support allowance is not yet available. Information for incapacity benefit is provided in the following table.
	
		
			  Proportion of IB claimants with mental and behavioural disorders as main disabling condition, November 1997 to 2008 
			  As at November each year:  All conditions (Number)  Mental and behavioural disorders (Number)  Physical and other conditions (Number)  Percentage of incapacity benefit claimants with mental and behavioural disorders 
			 1997 2,837,540 768,850 2,068,600 27.1 
			 1998 2,767,606 805,530 1,962,100 29.1 
			 1999 2,738,130 847,920 1,890,210 32.1 
			 2000 2,764,140 902,590 1,861,550 33.7 
			 2001 2,787,710 952,160 1,835,550 35.2 
			 2002 2,818,480 1,005,750 1,812,730 37.1 
			 2003 2,822,270 1,048,920 1,773,350 38.6 
			 2004 2,814,410 1,082,450 1,731,960 40.1 
			 2005 2,752,900 1,085,920 1,666,980 41.1 
			 2006 2,714,950 1,102,550 1,612,400 42.5 
			 2007 2,683,750 1,115,790 1,567,960 43.6 
			 2008 2,593,010 1,092,110 1,500,900 44.2 
			  Notes: 1. Causes of incapacity are based on the International Classification of Diseases, 10(th) Revision, published by the World Health Organisation. 2. To qualify for incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance, claimants must undertake a medical assessment of incapacity for work called the personal capability assessment. Therefore, the medical condition recorded on the claim form does not itself confer benefit entitlement. 3. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 4. Percentages are rounded to 1 decimal place. 5. Figures for 1997 and 1998 have been derived by applying 5 per cent. proportions to 100 per cent. WPLS totals.  Source: DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 5 per cent. and 100 per cent. data. 
		
	
	There is no clear evidence for the increase in mental illness as the main disabling condition. Informed suggestions for the increase are multi-factorial and include:
	(i) Better diagnosis-particularly of behavioural conditions such as autism;
	(ii) Less stigma-more people are willing to talk about the mental health issues affecting them;
	(iii) Better treatment of physical conditions-particularly musculo-skeletal conditions; and
	(iv) The changing nature of business-work intensity.
	The Government believe that, with the right help and support, many more people with a mental health condition or disability can achieve independent and fulfilling lives, including through employment.
	We have successfully introduced the more work-focused employment and support allowance for new customers, engaging with people more actively and ensuring they are aware of support and opportunities available. Pathways to Work, including the condition management programme, is available to everyone receiving incapacity benefits and employment and support allowance in Great Britain. Evidence on its effectiveness for customers with mental health conditions is mainly positive. A study of existing customers found that the employment impact for customers with mental health conditions was higher than for those without.
	We have also committed to ensuring that the personalised support delivered through Pathways to Work is as co-ordinated as possible with the increase in mental health treatment provision delivered through the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme in England, and similar programmes in Scotland and Wales.
	From December, we will pilot an occupational health helpline for employers, especially small and micro businesses, to help them to manage and support people who have mental health conditions to remain in or return to work.

Social Security Benefits: Standards

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many outstanding claims for  (a) incapacity benefit and  (b) employment and support allowance have there been in each benefit delivery centre in each month of the last two years;
	(2)  what the average actual clearance time for  (a) incapacity benefit and  (b) employment and support allowance claims has been in each month of the last two years for which figures are available;
	(3)  for what reasons average actual clearance times (AACTs) for  (a) incapacity benefit and  (b) employment and support allowance exceed her Department's target times; and what steps she is taking to ensure that AACTs targets for each such benefit are met;
	(4)  what assessment she has made of her Department's performance in the introduction of employment and support allowance;
	(5)  what assessment she has made of her Department's performance in implementing the employment and support allowance; and if she will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions asking:
	how many outstanding claims for (a) incapacity benefit and (b) employment and support allowance have there been in each benefit delivery centre in each month of the last two years;
	what the average actual clearance times for (a) incapacity benefit and (b) employment and support allowance claims have been in each month of the last two years for which figures are available;
	for what reasons average actual clearance times (AACTs) for (a) incapacity benefit and (b) employment and support allowance exceed his Department's target times; and what steps he is taking to ensure that AACTs targets for each such benefit are met;
	what assessment he has made of his Department's performance in the introduction of the new employment and support allowance; and
	what assessment he has made of his Department's performance in implementing the employment and support allowance; and if he will make a statement.
	This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	The available information about AACTs over the last two years has been placed in the Library. The AACT for Incapacity Benefit is calculated from the date a properly completed claim form is received by Jobcentre Plus to the date a decision is made on the claim. Our benefit processing system calculates the AACTs by taking each claim's clearance time using the dates as described and calculates an average across the volume of claims processed.
	The Department also published experimental monthly early estimates for Employment and Support Allowance and incapacity benefits caseload figures on 17 June 2009. Furthermore there will be an independent evaluation report published in summer 2010.

Social Security Benefits: Young People

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will commission research to examine the adequacy of benefit provision for the basic living costs of people under 25 years; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: I have no plans to commission research. Benefits for people under 25 years are uprated each year in line with prices which ensures that they maintain their value in real terms. Additional provision is available for help with housing costs and for disabled young people. Young families with children will be eligible for child benefit and the working tax credit and child tax credit.

State Retirement Pensions

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will estimate the average weekly payment of the basic state pension for  (a) men and  (b) women in (i) 2010, (ii) 2020, (iii) 2030, (iv) 2040 and (v) 2050; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Eagle: The information is in the following table.
	
		
			  Average weekly amounts of the basic state pension, Great Britain 
			  £ 
			   2010  2020  2030  2040  2050 
			  Cash  
			 Men 93 141 219 346 558 
			 Women 80 127 211 348 563 
			   
			  Real terms (2008-09 prices)  
			 Men 88 101 119 141 172 
			 Women 76 91 115 142 173 
			  Notes: 1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest £1. 2. Forecasts of basic state pension average amounts in 2010-11 are based on the Budget 2009 forecasts. Basic state pension average amounts from 2020-21 onwards are based on the latest published long-term projections which were published Budget 2008. 3. The real terms figures are calculated from the Budget 2008 GDP deflator.  Source:  Budget 2009 forecasts and Budget 2008 long-term projections.

State Retirement Pensions

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people are in receipt of the 25p age addition; when the size of the addition was last reviewed; how much it would be if it had been uprated in line with  (a) prices and  (b) earnings since its introduction; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Eagle: There are currently 2.7 million people in receipt of 25p age addition. The 25p weekly age addition was introduced in 1971 for those pensioners over the age of 80. This amount has not been uprated by successive governments.
	 (a) Uprating the 25p age addition by prices since 1971 would make it worth £2.90 in 2009-10.
	 (b) Uprating the 25p age addition by earnings since 1971 would make it worth £4.91 in 2009-10.

Travelling People: Housing Benefit

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance her Department has issued to local authorities on the eligibility of occupants of illegal Traveller sites for housing benefit.

Helen Goodman: We have not issued any specific guidance on this subject.

Unemployment

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will place in the Library a copy of the Jobcentre Plus National Workload Projection update for July 2009.

Jim Knight: The information is not available in the format requested.

Unemployment Benefits: Lone Parents

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to page 11 of the Explanatory Memorandum to the Social Security (Lone Parents and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2008, if she will update her estimate of the number of lone parents projected to be on out of work benefits.

Helen Goodman: The estimates of the number of lone parents projected to be on out of work benefits were based on the best available data and were sensitive to the particular assumptions used. The information necessary to revise these estimates is not available as the latest data do not yet reflect the impact of lone parent obligations on the number of lone parents on out of work benefits.

Unemployment: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps her Department is taking to reduce levels of youth unemployment in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point.

Jim Knight: The Government are committed to giving everyone the support they need to find employment as quickly as possible, whatever their age and wherever they live.
	On 6 April 2009, as part of the Government's response to the economic downturn, the Department for Work and Pensions put in place extra support for newly unemployed customers, including information and advice about the latest job search techniques and coaching on how to make the most of transferable skills. Extra help for those who have been claiming jobseeker's allowance for six months was also introduced, including opportunities to volunteer, support to become self-employed, recruitment subsidies and work-focused training.
	Since last autumn, the Department has also quadrupled the available funding for the Rapid Response Service, which provides advice and support to customers facing redundancy. It has extended Local Employment Partnerships, the Adviser Discretion Fund and Access to Work so they are available to customers from the first day of their claim, alongside the support they receive from their Jobcentre Plus personal adviser.
	The introduction of the flexible new deal across phase 1 areas from October 2009 will give providers the freedom to offer personalised, tailored support to everyone who has been claiming jobseeker's allowance for 12 months, helping them overcome their individual barriers to work. We expect to introduce flexible new deal in phase 2 areas from October 2010.
	This will be available to jobseeker's allowance customers of all ages, throughout England, Scotland and Wales, to ensure that everyone has the best possible chance of finding work.
	Furthermore, from next year all customers aged 18-24 who are approaching 12 months of their claim to jobseeker's allowance will have access to the young person's guarantee. This will offer the following from January 2010:
	1. A new job created through the Future Jobs Fund;
	2. Support to move into an existing job in a key employment sector;
	3. Work-focused training; or
	4. A work experience place through the Community Task Force.
	Some elements of the guarantee will be available sooner. In October of this year the first jobs created by the Future Jobs Fund will be available. Training to enter key employment sectors will be available in the autumn.

Unemployment: Young People

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations her Department has received on youth unemployment; and what steps her Department is taking to reduce levels of youth unemployment in  (a) England,  (b) the North West,  (c) Merseyside and  (d) Cheshire.

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations her Department has received on youth unemployment; and what steps her Department is taking to reduce youth unemployment in  (a) Hemel Hempstead,  (b) Hertfordshire,  (c) the South of England and  (d) England.

Jim Knight: The Department receives representations on youth unemployment from a wide range of people.
	The Department is committed to giving everyone the support they need to find employment as quickly as possible, whatever their age.
	On 6 April 2009, as part of the Government's response to the economic downturn, the Department for Work and Pensions put in place extra support for newly unemployed customers, including information and advice about the latest job search techniques and coaching on how to make the most of transferable skills. Extra help for those who have been claiming jobseeker's allowance for six months was also introduced, including opportunities to volunteer, support to become self-employed, recruitment subsidies and work-focused training.
	Since last autumn, the Department has also quadrupled the available funding for the Rapid Response Service, which provides advice and support to customers facing redundancy. It has extended Local Employment Partnerships, the Adviser Discretion Fund and Access to Work so they are available to customers from the first day of their claim, alongside the support they receive from their Jobcentre Plus personal adviser.
	The introduction of the Flexible New Deal across Phase 1 areas from this October will give providers the freedom to offer personalised, tailored support to everyone who has been claiming jobseeker's allowance for twelve months, helping them overcome their individual barriers to work. It is expected that Flexible New Deal will be introduced in Phase 2 areas from October 2010.
	This will be available to jobseeker's allowance customers of all ages, throughout England, Scotland and Wales, to ensure that everyone has the best possible chance of finding work.
	Furthermore, from next year all customers aged 18-24 who are approaching 12 months of their claim to jobseeker's allowance will have access to the Young Person's Guarantee. This will offer the following from January 2010:
	A new job created through the Future Jobs Fund;
	Support to move into an existing job in a key employment sector;
	Work-focused training; or
	A work experience place through the Community Task Force.
	Some elements of the guarantee will be available sooner. In October of this year the first jobs created by the Future Jobs Fund will be available. Training to enter key employment sectors will be available in the autumn.

Waste Disposal: Safety

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the Health and Safety Executive has assessed the safety of household wheeled refuse containers in relation to deliberate fires.

Jonathan R Shaw: The Health and Safety Executive has not assessed the safety of household refuse containers in relation to deliberate fires, and has no current plans to do so.

Work Experience

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will give job centres the discretion to vary the time and day on which a person is required to sign on to allow them to undertake an internship; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Knight: A customer claiming jobseeker's allowance is normally expected to attend (sign) each fortnight on their benefit week ending date, which is determined by their national insurance number. In circumstances where a customer cannot attend on their normal benefit week ending date, Jobcentres already have the discretion to allocate a different attendance day.
	Where a person in receipt of jobseeker's allowance wants to undertake an internship and continue to receive jobseeker's allowance, they must comply with the conditions of entitlement. These conditions require the jobseeker not to be in remunerative work, and to be actively seeking and available for work of at least 40 hours per week. Jobseekers engaged in full-time work experience/internships will not usually be able to satisfy these conditions.
	Additionally, jobseekers may be considered to be in remunerative work if the activities they do are for, on average, 16 hours or more per week and equivalent to that being undertaken by a paid employee. In such cases, regardless of whether they receive pay for the work they are doing, they would have no entitlement to jobseeker's allowance.
	Changes are underway that will see graduates who have left university this year and are still unemployed after six months, being able to undertake an internship for up to 13 weeks and remain on benefits. This group will move off jobseeker's allowance and onto a training allowance and will not be required to attend every fortnight as a condition of payment.

Work Experience: Disabled

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many work trial placements her Department and its agencies have  (a) offered to and  (b) fulfilled for disabled people in each of the last three years.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 13 July 2009
	Work Trials are available to support the recruitment of employees under Local Employment Partnership arrangements. These are not specific to disabled people. No central records are kept by DWP businesses on when these are used and obtaining such information would be at a disproportionate cost.

Workstep

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Workstep places were available in each region in  (a) each of the last five years and  (b) 2009.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 7 July 2009
	The information is in the following table.
	
		
			  The number of contracted Workstep places by region over the last five years, and preliminary allocations for 2009-10 
			   2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			 East Midlands 711 711 711 714 663 594 
			 North East 455 435 561 560 467 389 
			 London 673 633 576 530 469 394 
			 South East 1,314 1,334 1,280 1,282 1,261 1,227 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 875 875 907 907 743 667 
			 Wales 851 853 940 940 940 944 
			 West Midlands 616 616 736 693 635 553 
			 Scotland 1,729 1,725 1,882 1,533 1,790 1,734 
			 South West 1,352 1,354 1,431 1,428 1,399 1,331 
			 North West 775 775 907 907 758 721 
			 East 639 637 767 768 712 687 
			 Nationals 3,514 3,559 4,182 3,758 3,701 3,575 
			  Notes : 1. Figures are full-time equivalent rounded to the nearest whole figure. 2. Figures are an average, full-time equivalent for each year shown except the current year. 3. Figures for 2009-10 represent preliminary allocations. Additional places will be awarded to reflect local need and provider performance. Overall number of places will match 2008-09. 4. The 'Nationals' column represents providers who deliver support across the country.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when she plans to reply to Question  (a) 269292 and  (b) 269293, tabled on 20 April 2009, on the state retirement pension.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 22 June 2009
	I replied to the hon. Member's questions on 23 June 2009,  Official Report , column 817W.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when she plans to answer Question 283625, tabled on 2 July 2009, on claims for benefits relating to housing.

Helen Goodman: holding answer 20 July 2009
	I replied to the hon. Member's question on 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 427W.

Young People

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when she expects her Department to achieve its public service agreement target in respect of people aged between 16 and 18 years old who are not in education, employment or training.

Iain Wright: holding answer 3 July 2009
	I have been asked to reply.
	The Department's public service agreement target is to reduce the proportion of 16 to 18-year-olds not in education, employment or training (NEET) by 2 percentage points by the end of 2010, from a baseline of 9.6 per cent. at the end of 2004. The figures for 2010 are due to be published in June 2011.

Young Person's Guarantee

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what funding arrangements have been put in place to enable her Department to transfer the Young Persons' Guarantee from a discretionary to mandatory basis; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  if she will estimate the likely cost to her Department of making the Young Persons' Guarantee mandatory.

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when she plans to make the young persons guarantee mandatory.

Jim Knight: The 2009 Budget made £1.1 billion available to deliver the Future Jobs Fund and Young Person's Guarantee. Together they will create new jobs in areas of high unemployment and provide a guaranteed job, work placement or training place for the minority of young people aged between 18 and 24 who reach 12 months unemployment. From next year young people will be required to accept one of the guaranteed offers. This will be met from within the existing funding and there will be no additional costs.

Young Person's Guarantee

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many places the Government plans to provide under  (a) the Future Jobs Fund,  (b) support to take an existing job in a key employment sector,  (c) work-focused training places and  (d) places on a community task force to fulfil the Young Person's Guarantee in the period January 2010 to March 2011.

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many  (a) jobs from the Future Jobs Fund,  (b) training places,  (c) community task force places and  (d) offers of support to take an existing job in a key employment sector will be provided in order to deliver the Young Persons' Guarantee in 2009-10;
	(2)  how many  (a) jobs under the Future Jobs Fund,  (b) training places,  (c) community task force places and  (d) offers of support to take an existing job in a key employment sector are required to enable the change in the Young Persons' Guarantee from a voluntary to a mandatory programme.

Jim Knight: The Future Jobs Fund aims to create 150,000 new jobs. Of this total, at least 100,000 will be created for young people. The remaining 50,000 will be allocated to unemployment hot spots-in these areas all individuals approaching 12 months or more on out of work benefits will be eligible for a Future Jobs Fund job.
	We expect the work-focused training offer to support around 80,000 young people, including pre-employment training. The Community Task Force element of the offer will see young people participating in work placements to deliver real help to their community. This element is responsive to demand. In addition, Jobcentre Plus will work with growth sectors to help up to 100,000 young people access existing jobs in key employment sectors.
	The Young Persons Guarantee will provide jobs and training opportunities to meet the terms of the guarantee in 2009-10 and 2010-11.
	DWP does not forecast unemployment among young people, however, systems are in place to ensure that the Government will deliver on their commitment to provide sufficient jobs, training or community task force places to meet demand when the Young Person's Guarantee becomes mandatory.

OLYMPICS

Departmental Procurement

Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what progress the Government Olympic Executive has made in implementing the recommendations of the Glover Report in its procurement processes.

Tessa Jowell: The Government Olympic Executive (GOE) is part of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport-reporting to me through the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. GOE procurement will therefore be included in the answer provided by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.

Olympic Games 2012: Contracts

Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what level of security clearance is required for applicants for contracts associated with the London 2012 Olympics; and how long on average it has taken each such applicant to obtain that clearance.

Tessa Jowell: Security clearance is not required from companies at the bidding stage; save for circumstances when the procurement is highly sensitive, for example, where only List X (Government security accreditation) companies could be invited to bid.
	At the first stage of the tender process (pre-qualification questionnaire), the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) checks the company registration details, financial status and governance status.
	Following procurement, all ODA contractors, as a minimum requirement, must provide the identity of their staff for checking in accordance with 'Basic Check - Annex B' as detailed within the Cabinet Office document Her Majesty's Government's (HMG) Baseline Personnel Security Standards. Clearance time is dependent on each contractor successfully providing the required information and records of such timings are not kept.

TREASURY

Business: Government Assistance

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what support his Department is providing to businesses during the economic downturn.

Ian Pearson: The Government have introduced a range of measures to support cash flow, credit and investment, to help businesses get through the recession.
	This includes HMRC's Business Payment Support Service, which has allowed businesses to spread £3 billion of tax payments over a longer, timetable, and a temporary extension of the time that businesses can claim tax relief for trading losses from one to three years (for losses up to £50,000). Capital allowances have also been increased temporarily, meaning that all firms investing more than £50,000 this year will benefit from higher tax relief. In addition, the small companies rate of corporation tax will not increase this year and the threshold at which empty property becomes liable for business rates has been temporarily increased.
	On 14 January 2009 the Business Secretary, Lord Mandelson, announced a package of measures including:
	The Working Capital Scheme, which guarantees banks' portfolios of existing loans to businesses with turnover up to £500 million. Over £1 billion of guarantees have now been issued under this scheme;
	The Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme, securing up to £1.3 billion of additional bank loans to small firms with a turnover of up to £25 million. Over 3,600 businesses have been offered loans totalling over £364.33 million;
	A £75 million Capital for Enterprise Fund (£50 million from Government augmented by £25 million from the banks) to invest in small businesses which need equity; and
	A Trade Credit Insurance Scheme to top-up cover if insurers reduce credit limits.

Business: Location

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of companies which relocated their headquarters from the UK to countries outside the United Kingdom in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: The Government are aware of a small number of British companies moving the tax residence of their parent company out of the UK over the last 12 months. Activity appears to have slowed since 2008, with only three groups moving in 2009.
	The Government have committed to reforming the way in which the UK taxes foreign corporate profits. From the first of this month, a wide ranging dividend exemption was introduced which enhances the UK's competitive position, allowing companies, including UK headquarters, to bring profits back to the UK tax free.
	The Government have also committed to reforming the controlled foreign company regime; these rules are often cited as a key reason for groups relocating. In consultation with business we aim to modernise the rules to enhance the UK's competitive position while protecting the UK tax base.

Child Benefit

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many nationals of each A8 country were receiving child benefit for a child or children living in another EEA member state at the end of June 2009; and in respect of how many such children child benefit was being paid on that date.

Stephen Timms: Around 7.5 million families are currently claiming child benefit for around 13 million children. Out of that total, at the end of June 2009, there were 25,494 ongoing child benefit awards to A8 nationals recorded as receiving child benefit for 41,740 children living in another EEA member state. These awards are made by virtue of EC social security co-ordinating regulations which the UK has administered since it joined the European Economic Community in 1973.
	The estimated breakdown by nationality is as follows.
	
		
			  Country  Number of awards at 30 June 2009  Number of children included in awards 
			 Czech Republic 158 267 
			 Estonia 16 28 
			 Hungary 69 112 
			 Latvia 252 330 
			 Lithuania 721 1057 
			 Poland 22,805 37,433 
			 Slovakia 1,470 2,508 
			 Slovenia 3 5 
			 Total 25,494 41,740

Child Trust Fund: Yorkshire and the Humber

Jon Trickett: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many children in  (a) Yorkshire and the Humber and  (b) Hemsworth constituency had received child trust fund payments by the latest date for which figures are available.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for City of York (Hugh Bayley) on 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 80W.

Consultants

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 24 April 2009,  Official Report, column 983W, on consultants, for which assignments his Department and its agencies have engaged external consultants in the last 12 months; and what the cost to his Department has been of each such assignment.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the former Exchequer Secretary (Angela Eagle) on 24 April 2009,  Official Report, column 983W to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable). The Treasury does not hold a central record of the individual assignments for which external consultants are engaged and the information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Contracts

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the monetary value is of the contracts awarded through OGCbuying. solutions to  (a) Drivas Jonas,  (b) GVA Grimley and  (c) Lambert Smith Hampton for (i) negotiation of rating assessments and (ii) appeals against valuation assessments.

Ian Pearson: Buying Solutions does not hold the data requested.

Council Tax: Valuation Office Agency

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether a privacy impact assessment was undertaken in relation to the Valuation Office Agency's council tax banding support tool.

Stephen Timms: No. The tool was developed before privacy impact assessment became mandatory and the project posed no risk to the privacy of an individual.

Damian McBride

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what date he last met Mr. Damian McBride in the course of his official duties.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Chancellor of the Exchequer has not met Damian McBride since he retired as a special adviser on 11 April 2009.

Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people from ethnic minority backgrounds are employed by his Department.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Treasury Group reports on staff diversity annually in its departmental report, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House and on the Treasury's website.

Departmental Press

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what  (a) newspapers and  (b) periodicals are delivered to the private office of each Minister in his Department; and at what cost in the latest period for which figures are available.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The following list shows the newspapers and periodicals provided for Treasury Ministers in May 2009 at a cost of £923.39.
	 The Sun
	 Financial Times
	 Daily Telegraph
	 The Observer
	 Daily Record
	 The Economist
	 The New Statesman
	 Daily Mail
	 The Times
	 The Independent
	 Evening Standard
	 The Scotsman
	 Business Week
	 Daily Mirror
	 The Guardian
	 Daily Express
	 Herald International
	 Glasgow Herald
	 Private Eye

Departmental Procurement

Bob Spink: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what changes have been made to his Department's  (a) office equipment and  (b) stationery purchasing policy in the last six months.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Treasury has made no changes to its purchasing policies for office equipment or stationery in the last six months.

Drinking Water

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how much his Department spent on water coolers in each of the last six months;
	(2)  how much his Department spent on bottled water in each of the last six months.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: For information on spending on bottled water, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by the former Exchequer Secretary (Kitty Ussher) on 11 June 2009,  Official Report, column 979W. The cost of water coolers for the 2008-09 financial year was £2,224, equating to £185 per calendar month.

Equality

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent steps his Department has taken to increase levels of equality for employees in his Department.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Treasury's Diversity Strategy 2009-11 was launched in the Department on 3 July 2009 and sets out what recent steps have been taken to increase equality, particularly in recruitment, performance management and talent management.
	In addition to this work, the Treasury's current equality schemes, available on the Treasury's website, detail how the Department promotes equality of opportunity for all.

Equitable Life Assurance Society: Compensation

Paul Burstow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 11 March 2009,  Official Report, column 420W, on Equitable Life, and the Oral Statement of 15 January 2009,  Official Report, columns 377-80, if he will publish the estimate his Department made of the length of time it would take to make compensation payments as recommended by the Ombudsman; and if he will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: The Government are committed to delivering justice to the policyholders of Equitable Life and to delivering an ex-gratia payments scheme that corrects the injustices which have been accepted by Government. They accept that speed is of the essence for establishing a payments scheme.
	Sir John Chadwick has been commissioned by Government to provide advice on matters arising from its response to the ombudsman's report and findings of maladministration resulting from injustice that the Government have accepted. The Government would of course consider Sir John's advice once it is published and make ex-gratia payments to policyholders as it decides appropriate.
	It is important that Sir John progresses with urgency, but that he also provides the right advice, especially in light of the enormous amount of information Sir John must go through.
	I have today issued a written ministerial statement updating the House on the progress of Sir John's work. Both the Government and Sir John have committed to providing regular updates on progress.

Equitable Life Assurance Society: Compensation

Paul Burstow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 16 March 2009,  Official Report, column 858W, on Equitable Life: compensation, when he expects the ex-gratia payment scheme for older people who have lost money with Equitable Life to commence; and if he will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: The Government are committed to delivering justice to the policyholders of Equitable Life and to delivering an ex-gratia payments scheme that corrects the injustices which have been accepted by Government.
	They have commissioned Sir John Chadwick to review available information and consider a number of issues in relation to determining relative losses suffered by Equitable Life policyholders, and their impact. Sir John's work will inform the establishment of an ex-gratia payments scheme.
	Sir John is very aware of the need to reach a conclusion on this matter. It is important that he progresses his work with urgency, but that he also provides the right advice, especially in light of the enormous amounts of information that he must go through.
	I have today issued a written ministerial statement updating the House on the progress of Sir John's work. Both the Government and Sir John have committed to providing regular updates on progress.

Equitable Life Assurance Society: Compensation

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the Government's long-term plans are for the compensation of those identified by the Parliamentary Ombudsman as having lost money with Equitable Life as a result of failure of the regulatory process.

Liam Byrne: The Government are committed to delivering justice to the policyholders of Equitable Life and to delivering an ex-gratia payments scheme that corrects the injustices which have been accepted by Government.
	They have commissioned Sir John Chadwick to provide advice on matters arising from its response to the ombudsman's report and findings of maladministration resulting from injustice which the Government have accepted. The Government would make careful consideration of Sir John's advice once it is published and make ex-gratia payments to policyholders as it decides appropriate.

Equitable Life Assurance Society: Coventry

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what  (a) financial and  (b) other assistance his Department is providing to pensioners in Coventry who have lost money with Equitable Life.

Liam Byrne: The Government are committed to delivering justice to the policyholders of Equitable Life and to delivering an ex-gratia payments scheme that corrects the injustices which have been accepted by Government.
	They have commissioned Sir John Chadwick to review available information and consider a number of issues in relation to determining relative losses suffered by Equitable Life policyholders, and their impact. His work will inform the establishment of an ex-gratia payments scheme.
	Both Sir John and the Government are very aware of the need to reach a conclusion on this matter and work is being progressed with expediency, but at this stage it is not possible to identify the nature of specific assistance that will be provided to specific groups of policyholders.

Equitable Life Assurance Society: Coventry

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department has taken in respect of those resident in Coventry who have lost money with Equitable Life.

Liam Byrne: The Government are committed to delivering justice to the policyholders of Equitable Life and to delivering an ex-gratia payments scheme that corrects the injustices which have been accepted by Government.
	They have commissioned Sir John Chadwick to review available information and consider a number of issues in relation to determining relative losses suffered by Equitable Life policyholders, and their impact. His work will inform the establishment of an ex-gratia payments scheme.
	Both Sir John and the Government are very aware of the need to reach a conclusion on this matter and work is being progressed with expediency, but at this stage it is not possible to identify the nature of specific assistance that will be provided to specific groups of policyholders.

Equitable Life Assurance Society: Pensioners

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his most recent estimate is of the number of pensioners who have lost money in Equitable Life.

Liam Byrne: The Government have commissioned Sir John Chadwick to review available information and consider a number of issues in relation to determining relative losses suffered by Equitable Life policyholders, and their impact.
	Sir John is progressing his work with expediency and today, a written ministerial statement has been published outlining his progress.
	On the issue of the number of pensioners who have lost money with Equitable Life, the Government are awaiting their Sir John Chadwick's advice to inform its view on this matter.

EU Grants and Loans: Wales

Hywel Williams: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any change has been made to the overall block grant received by the Welsh Assembly Government as a result of monies received from the EU Convergence Programme in each year from 2007 to date; and whether any such change is likely to be made in each year from 2010-13.

Liam Byrne: No change was made to the block grant as a result of monies received from the EU Convergence Programme from 2007 and no changes are expected. Monies received from the EU Convergence Programme are additional to the block grant received by the Welsh Assembly Government from the UK Government.

Financial Action Task Force

Nick Ainger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress is being made by the Financial Action Task Force of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in its work on effective due diligence by banks and the ending of secrecy on beneficial ownership of companies and trusts; and if he will make a statement.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has issued 40+9 recommendations on the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing. These require countries to ensure that banks conduct due diligence on their customers, and that the beneficial ownership information of companies and trusts is collected and accessible to competent authorities. The FATF is currently preparing for its fourth round of assessment of countries against the standards, which will focus on how effectively the measures work in practice.

Financial Services Authority

Nick Ainger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what steps the Financial Services Authority is taking to ensure that UK-regulated banks are compliant with requirements on due diligence to prevent funds from corrupt sources entering the UK;
	(2)  what powers the Financial Services Authority has in respect of UK-regulated banks in the event of their failure to carry out effective due diligence on the source of funds in accounts which they administer.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Under the Money Laundering Regulations 2007, a UK-authorised bank is required to undertake enhanced customer due diligence checks, including taking adequate measures to establish the source of wealth and source of funds, where it deals with a politically exposed person. It is also required to undertake enhanced ongoing monitoring. A politically exposed person is an individual who may be more vulnerable to corruption.
	The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is the supervisory authority for banks. It is required to effectively monitor those banks and take the necessary measures to ensure they comply with the Money Laundering Regulations. It meets this obligation by assessing risks in individual firms, and risks that impact across a range of firms within a particular market or industry sector.
	The FSA has both criminal and civil sanctions to address breaches of the Money Laundering Regulations. The Money Laundering Regulations add to the range of options available to the FSA under the Financial Services and Markets Act for dealing with anti-money laundering failures.

Financial Services Authority: Manpower

Nick Hurd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many permanent staff at the Financial Services Authority  (a) hot desk and  (b) do not have permanently allocated desks.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The matter raised in this question is the responsibility of the Financial Services Authority (FSA), whose day to day operations are independent from Government control and influence.

Financial Services: Regulation

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the performance of the tripartite regulatory regime in relation to the regulation of banks.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Banking regulation is conducted by the Financial Services Authority, the independent financial regulator. As is the case in every developed economy, responsibility for financial stability in the UK is shared between the financial regulator, the central bank and the finance and economics ministry. The Government have recently published "Reforming financial markets" which includes proposals to formalise the structures, and increase the transparency, of co-operation between the FSA, the Bank of England and the Treasury.

Financial Services: Regulation

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department has taken in strengthen the regulation of the financial services sector in the last 12 months.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: "Reforming financial markets", which sets out the Government's strategy for strengthening the regulation of financial services, including actions taken to date, was published on 8 July.

Fuel: Prices

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has taken steps to identify possible locations for a pilot scheme for reduced fuel prices in island communities.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland on 20 July 2009,  Official Report, column 767W.

Government Departments: Aviation

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 24 April 2009,  Official Report, column 985W, on Government departments: aviation, whether the Government Air Programme includes flights by  (a) Foreign and Commonwealth Office staff,  (b) Ministry of Defence civilian staff,  (c) members of the armed forces and  (d) Department for International Development staff.

Ian Pearson: The Government air programme does include flights by Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development staff. It does not include Ministry of Defence civilian staff or armed forces.

Government Departments: Aviation

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 24 April 2009,  Official Report, column 985W, on Government departments: aviation, what the estimated expenditure on domestic flights is of each year of the Government Air Programme contract.

Ian Pearson: Historic data suggest that 22 per cent. of the air spend relates to domestic flights. Using the estimated £69.6 million per annum applying to the Government air programme this would equate to an estimated £15.3 million per annum.

Government Departments: Aviation

Nick Hurd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 24 April 2009,  Official Report, column 985W, on government departments: aviation, whether the Government Air Programme will encompass domestic and international air travel by officials from  (a) central government departments,  (b) executive agencies and  (c) non-departmental public bodies.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Government Air Programme enables domestic and international air travel by officials from central Government Departments, Executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies.

Infrastructure UK: Finance

Bob Neill: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the planned budget is for the new Infrastructure UK advisory body.

Liam Byrne: Building Britain's Future announced that Lord Davies of Abersoch would lead the development of Infrastructure UK. He will consider the appropriate terms of reference for Infrastructure UK and will report to the Prime Minister, Chancellor and the First Secretary of State at the pre-Budget report. The resource required for Infrastructure UK will be decided once these details have been considered fully.

Lloyds Banking Group: Islamic Bank of Britain

Jo Swinson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether officials of his Department have had recent discussions with representatives of Lloyds Banking Group on its decision to order the Islamic Bank of Britain to cease processing payments for Interpal.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 The Treasury has regular discussions with the banking sector on financial crime and financial sanctions issues. This includes ongoing discussions about the provision of banking services to individuals or entities who are on UK, US or international sanctions lists.

Local Authorities: Fess and Charges

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether local authority search fees are liable for value added tax.

Stephen Timms: When a local authority provides a person with access to its registers and databases in order to undertake property searches, that is a statutory activity and so is free of VAT.
	However, where a local authority compiles the information it holds and provides that in return for payment, that service is subject to VAT.

Meat: Procurement

David Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will instruct the Office of Government Commerce to classify halal meat to a category 1 food for the purposes of public procurement;
	(2)  what guidance the Office of Government Commerce provides to the public sector on procuring  (a) pre-stunned and  (b) non-stunned halal meat.

Ian Pearson: holding answers 20 July 2009
	 The purpose of the Food Quality Standards published by the OGC is to provide guidance for suppliers on the general quality of products sought in food procurements undertaken by all public sector authorities. In the Standards, matters relating to food policy have been provided by DEFRA, those related to food safety provided by the Food Standards Agency. The Standards are not to be considered as a series of product specifications but as a guide to the minimum quality criteria that authorities may include in their specifications and will expect the contractor to deliver.
	Mandatory requirements, for example around food safety, are contained in legislation rather than in the Standards. There are no mandatory requirements around quality assurance.
	The Standards state, however, that contractors should ensure that wherever possible the supply of all raw food should originate from sources participating in recognised national or international assurance schemes or equivalent standards where such schemes exist.
	For raw food products (other than fish) contractors should supply to the authority unprocessed commodities, lightly processed foods and drinks, and composite products, produced in accordance with one or more of four categories.
	Category 1 denotes food produced in accordance with relevant parts of Standards such as Red Tractor, Food Assurance Scheme or equivalent Standard or, in the case of eggs in their shells, the Lion Quality Mark or equivalent. The procurement of food using alternative schemes shall be subject to prior approval by the authority.
	The Standards do not contain specific guidance on Halal foods other than to state that ethnic food products must be sourced, prepared, processed and packed in accordance with the specific requirements of the religious law, where these apply eg Halal or Kosher foods. The assurance schemes in category 1 can be applied to Halal meat as to other products.

Members: Correspondence

Michael Howard: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to reply to the letters dated 3 March, 28 May and 15 June 2009 from the right hon. and learned Member for Folkestone and Hythe, with regard to Mr. Bernard Lockett.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A reply has been sent to the right hon. and learned Member.

Members: Correspondence

John Stanley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will reply to the letters sent to him by the right hon. Member for Tonbridge and Malling on 12 November 2008 and 13 February 2009 on behalf of his constituents Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Miller.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A reply has been sent to the hon. Member.

Mortgages

Grant Shapps: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  whether he plans to take further steps in co-operation with the mortgage insurance industry to assist first-time buyers to gain access to mortgage finance;
	(2)  if he will take further steps to assist first-time buyers to gain access to mortgage finance;
	(3)  which of the banks in which the Government has purchased a shareholding provide mortgage finance for purchases under the  (a) HomeBuy Direct,  (b) OwnHome,  (c) OpenMarket HomeBuy,  (d) the First-time Buyers' Initiative,  (e) MyChoice HomeBuy,  (f) New Build HomeBuy,  (g) Social HomeBuy and  (h) Rent to HomeBuy schemes.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Government's key objective for housing is to ensure everyone has access to a decent home at a price they can afford. The Government remain committed to the delivery of affordable housing, including through both shared equity and shared ownership schemes. Since 1997 the Government have helped more than 110,000 households into low cost homeownership through shared ownership and shared equity.
	Decisions concerning whether to engage in lending to support shared equity of shared ownership remain commercial decisions for firms. Where there is public sector investment in financial institutions these stakes will be managed on an arm's length and independent basis by UK Financial Investments Ltd.

Mortgages

Paul Burstow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received on the effect on the availability of mortgages of deferring mortgage applications to an underwriter; and if he will make a statement.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Treasury Ministers and officials receive representations from a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such representations.

Property

Sarah Teather: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the  (a) proportion and  (b) monetary value of UK property which is held offshore by investment funds or limited partnerships.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested is not available.

Property Unit Trusts

Sarah Teather: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many authorised property units trusts there are; and what types of property they are allowed to invest in.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Information on authorised unit trusts, including those that invest in property, is available from the Financial Services Authority. Details on the types of assets that authorised funds can invest in are also available via the FSA.

Property Unit Trusts

Sarah Teather: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of exempting authorised property unit trusts exempt from corporation tax in 2010-11.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: No estimate is available for the amount of corporation tax paid by property unit trusts.
	Since April 2008, following extensive consultation with industry, the Government introduced the Property Authorised Investment Fund regime, which enables tax efficient investment for funds that wish to invest predominately in property income generating assets. Subject to certain conditions being met, investors are taxed as if they had owned the underlying assets directly.

Public Bodies: Reviews

Nick Hurd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the terms of reference are of his Department's review of public bodies.

Liam Byrne: On 3 July 2009 I announced that a review of arm's length bodies would be taken forward as part of the Public Value Programme. Discussions with colleagues are ongoing to agree the scope of the review. The pre-Budget report will provide a progress report on the Public Value Programme.

Public Expenditure

Bob Neill: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what financial transfers are being made from the budget of each other Government department to the Department for Communities and Local Government to fund the housing expenditure announced in the 2009 Draft Legislative Programme; and what programmes in each department are having reductions in their funding to meet that expenditure.

Liam Byrne: The departmental contributions towards the housing expenditure announced in the 2009 draft legislative programme will come from a mixture of reprioritisation, efficient programme management and anticipated underspends. Up to £930 million will be contributed from the following sources:
	£350 million from the Department for Transport;
	£100 million from the Department for Children, Schools and Families;
	£90 million from the Home Office;
	£50 million from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills;
	£340 million of anticipated capital underspends in the Department of Health, Department for Children, Schools and Families, and the Department for Communities and Local Government.
	The remaining £586 million will be provided by the Department for Communities and Local Government.

Public Sector: Hospitality

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 27 February 2009,  Official Report, column 1187W, on public sector: hospitality, how many visits each customer department booked through the Expotel contract in the most recent year for which figures are available; and what expenditure each customer department incurred in relation to such visits.

Ian Pearson: As previously stated, Buying solutions only holds summary data for the framework, that is aggregate data for all public sector organisations. Data are not held centrally for the 182 individual public sector bodies that use the framework. Obtaining such a breakdown could be done only at disproportionate cost and I apologise for the delay in responding.

Public Sector: Pensions

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his most recent estimate is of the size of public sector pension liabilities.

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what his most recent estimate is of the service cost of all unfunded public sector pension schemes for  (a) 2006-07 and  (b) 2007-08;
	(2)  when he plans to answer Question 271171, tabled on 24 April 2009, on unfunded public sector pension schemes.

Liam Byrne: The total liability of all pay as you go public service occupational pension schemes will be published in the Long Term Public Finance Report later this year and will include the current service costs of these schemes.

Public Services: Finance

Hywel Williams: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 14 July 2009,  Official Report, column 362W, on public services: finance, if he will publish his Department's 1994 Needs Assessment for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 20 July 2009
	Today I am placing copies of the internal updates to the 1979 Needs Assessments for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland produced by the Treasury in 1994 in the Library of the House.

Real Estate Investments Trusts

Sarah Teather: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many commercial Real Estate Investments Trusts have been established; and what effect their establishment has had on levels of receipts of the Exchequer.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Around 20 UK Real Estate Investments Trusts have been established. It is too early to assess the full effect of their establishment on the Exchequer.

Revenue and Customs: Chorley

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many cases have been processed by the HM Revenue and Customs office in Chorley in each of the last four months.

Stephen Timms: HM Revenue and Customs processing staff based in Chorley have completed the following work in the last four months (March to June):
	 Capture of 1,225 SA Tax Returns
	(847 in March, 378 in April)
	 Replied to 1,391 items of Customer Correspondence
	(829 in March, 323 in April, 128 in May, 111 in June)
	 Dealt with 15,940 forms from Employers
	(3,473 in March, 2,912 in April, 5,244 in May, 4,311 in June)
	 Dealt with 8,896 miscellaneous processing items such as worklist entries
	(2,022 in March, 2,063 in April, 2,772 in May, 2,039 in June)

Revenue and Customs: Pay

Bob Spink: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how much was paid in bonuses to  (a) directors,  (b) senior managers,  (c) specialist and delivery managers and  (d) executive support and administration staff in HM Revenue and Customs in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how much was paid in bonuses to  (a) administration assistants,  (b) assistant officers,  (c) officers,  (d) higher officers,  (e) senior officers,  (f) fast stream trainees,  (g) Grade 7 employees,  (h) Grade 6 employees and  (i) senior civil servants in each HM Revenue and Customs office in each of the last five years.

Stephen Timms: Information on bonuses paid by job role in not available.
	In 2007-08 bonus payments were made to top performers and good performers on the pay band range maximum, as they had received a lower consolidated pay award.
	In 2008-09 bonuses were paid only to top performers. The amounts paid out by HMRC were as follows:
	
		
			   Total bonus paid (rounded to nearest £000)  Staff in post 
			   2007-08  2008-09  April 2008  April 2009 
			 Admin Assistant 1,423,000 467,000 12,640 11,005 
			 Admin Officer 4,500,000 1,736,000 37,187 37,113 
			 Officer 4,764,000 2,421,000 22,164 21,591 
			 Higher Officer 3,013,000 1,830,000 10,501 10,410 
			 Senior Officer 1,603,000 1,096,000 3,919 4,089 
			 Fast Stream 77,000 46,000 617 491 
			 Grade 7 830,000 754,000 2,387 2,556 
			 Grade 6 633,000 653,000 1,153 1,213 
			 Senior Civil Service 2,213,000 2,552,000 393 407 
			 Total 19,056,000 11,555,000 90,961 88,875 
		
	
	Providing details of bonuses paid split by grade and by office could jeopardise staff confidentiality. The small number of staff in some of the local offices means that when the bonus figures are combined with post numbers it is possible to identify individual bonus payments.
	We have provided a split of total bonus payments by office for the years above. This detail has been deposited in the Library of the House. For confidentiality reasons, total bonuses for those offices with less than 20 staff have not been included.
	HMRC does not hold the required data for earlier years in an easily accessible format and the information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Scotland

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what arrangements  (a) his Department and  (b) the Public Works Loan Board made with the Scottish Executive in relation to housing debt of those local authorities in Scotland which (a) undertook stock transfer prior to devolution and (b) have undertaken such transfers after devolution.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Government operate similar financial arrangements on stock transfers in Scotland as in England. The policy on stock transfers is a devolved matter. However where stock transfers from local authorities to housing associations give rise to receipts which are insufficient to cover the debt, the Government have made available additional provision to the Scottish Executive to cover the overhanging debt repaid by the relevant Scottish local authorities to the Public Works Loan Board. These arrangements did not exist prior to devolution in either England or Scotland.

Shared Ownership Schemes

Daniel Rogerson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidance  (a) his Department and  (b) the Financial Services Authority has issued on the level of cash deposit lenders when granting mortgages for those participating in shared ownership schemes.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Decisions concerning whether and on what terms to engage in lending to support shared ownership remain commercial decisions for firms.
	The Government remain committed to the delivery of affordable housing, including through both shared equity and shared ownership schemes.

Shared Ownership Schemes

Daniel Rogerson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make an assessment of the merits of introducing  (a) a loan guarantee scheme and  (b) direct lending from banks wholly or partly in public ownership for first-time buyers to participate in shared ownership schemes.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Government's key objective for housing is to ensure everyone has access to a decent home at a price they can afford. The Government remain committed to the delivery of affordable housing, including through both shared equity and shared ownership schemes. Since 1997 the Government have helped more than 110,000 households into low cost homeownership through shared ownership and shared equity.
	Decisions concerning whether to engage in lending to support shared equity of shared ownership remain commercial decisions for firms. Where there is public sector investment in financial institutions these stakes will be managed on an arm's length and independent basis by UK Financial Investments Ltd.

Valuation Office

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer of 15 June 2007,  Official Report, column 1422W, on the Valuation Office Agency, and to the decision of the Government to publish the ID Card Gateway Reviews, if he will place in the Library a copy of the Gate 4 review of the Valuations Project.

Ian Pearson: A copy of the review, with appropriate redactions, has been placed in the Library.

VAT: Registration

Danny Alexander: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many applications for value added tax registration submitted in the last 12 months took over  (a) one week,  (b) two weeks,  (c) three weeks,  (d) four weeks,  (e) five weeks,  (f) six weeks,  (g) seven weeks,  (h) eight weeks,  (i) nine weeks,  (j) 10 weeks,  (k) 11 weeks and  (l) 12 weeks to clear.

Stephen Timms: HM Revenue and Customs does not collect data at the level of detail requested.
	HMRC departmental strategic objective is to process 70 per cent. of applications within 12 days (reduced from 13 days in 2008-09) allowing for 30 per cent. that require further work before they can be processed because they are incomplete or need further risk checks.
	In 2008-09 HMRC achieved an overall performance of 74.9 per cent. against the 13-day target and for April and May 2009 72 per cent. and 70.4 per cent. against the 12-day target. HMRC has seen a significant increase in the number of cases requiring further risk checks which take longer to process, and this has impacted on June's performance which is 69.0 per cent.

VAT: Tax Rates and Bands

Jo Swinson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the merits of postponing the reversion of the rate of value added tax to 17.5 per cent. until after the January 2010 sales period.

Stephen Timms: The Government recognise that changing the rate at this time will be challenging for some businesses and have considered the representations businesses have made very carefully. The decision to reconfirm the 1 January reversion date that was announced last November has not been taken lightly. We have had to balance the needs of the economy as a whole against the challenges for businesses. Deferring the change by a month, as some have suggested, would have cost a further £800 million.
	By confirming the date for the end of the rate change in Finance Bill, businesses have a long lead time over which to plan for the change. HMRC will continue to talk to businesses with a view to identifying satisfactory arrangements for any particularly awkward cases.

Welfare Tax Credit: Bexley

David Evennett: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many households in Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency were in receipt of  (a) working tax credit and  (b) child tax credit in the last 12 month period for which figures are available.

Stephen Timms: The latest estimates of the average number of families benefiting from child and working tax credits awards, based on final family circumstances and incomes, are available in the HMRC publication, "Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics Finalised Annual Awards Geographical Analyses" for 2007-08. The publication is available on the HMRC website at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm
	HMRC do not produce these statistics separately for child tax credit and working tax credit.

Welfare Tax Credit: Hemsworth

Jon Trickett: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many people in Hemsworth constituency are receiving  (a) child and  (b) working tax credit; and what the average monetary value of tax credits to those households was in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many families in Hemsworth constituency have received working families tax credit since its inception.

Stephen Timms: Working families tax credit was replaced by child tax credit and working tax credit in April 2003.
	Estimates of the number of recipient families of working families tax credit, by parliamentary constituency, are given in the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) quarterly publication 'Working Families' and Disabled Person's Tax Credit Statistics Geographical analyses' for the quarters ended May 2001 to November 2002. The publications are available on the HMRC website at
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/wftc/wfdptc_geog.htm
	The latest information on the number of recipient families of Child and Working Tax Credits, by parliamentary constituency, is given in the HMRC snapshot publication, 'Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics Geographical Analyses April 2009'.
	The latest estimates of the average annual entitlements by each parliamentary constituency, based on incomes and final family circumstances, are shown in the HMRC publication 'Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics Finalised annual awards Geographical Analyses' for 2007-08.
	These publications are available on the HMRC website at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm
	HMRC do not produce these statistics separately for child tax credit and working tax credit.

Welfare Tax Credit: Overpayments

David Evennett: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many households in Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency were overpaid  (a) working tax credit and  (b) child tax credit in the last 12 month period for which figures are available.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is available only at disproportionate cost.
	However, estimates of the number of tax credits overpayments by parliamentary constituency, are available in the HMRC publication, "Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics Finalised annual awards Supplement on payments Geographical Analyses" for 2007-08. This publication is available on the HMRC website at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm

Working Tax Credit

Greg Knight: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the number of people who had their eligibility for tax credits removed as a result of failing to submit a renewal claim by 31 July in the last three years for which figures are available.

Stephen Timms: The information is not available.
	The following table shows the number of tax credit claims ended and the number restored during each of the last three years.
	
		
			  During year  Total number of claims ended  Total number of claims restored 
			 2006-07 283,533 121,427 
			 2007-08 455,420 223,165 
			 2008-09 465,305 214,556

Working Tax Credit

Karen Buck: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many households with children are in receipt of working tax credit in each local authority area.

Stephen Timms: Estimates of the average number of families with children benefiting from working tax credit by country, region and local authority are given in the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) finalised awards geographical publication, "Child and Working Tax Credits statistics Finalised annual awards Geographical analyses" for 2007-08. The publication is available on the HMRC website at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm

NORTHERN IRELAND

Departmental Accountancy

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he expects to publish his Department's resource accounts for 2008-09.

Shaun Woodward: The Northern Ireland Office resource accounts for 2008-09 have been laid in Parliament on 15 July 2009 in time for the summer recess. The printed and bound version will be made available within four weeks of 15 July 2009.

Departmental Carbon Emissions

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department spent on offsetting its carbon dioxide emissions in each of the last five years.

Shaun Woodward: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) has participated in stage one of the Government Carbon Offsetting Fund (GCOF) from 2006 to meet a Prime Ministerial commitment to offset ministerial and official air travel.
	GCOF works by requiring individual Government Departments to provide payments to offset relevant emissions.
	Payments to GCOF by the NIO, including the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland, and excluding its agencies and NDPBs in each of the last five years is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2008-09 6,447.91 
			 2007-08 6,338.83 
			 2006-07 11,384.56 
			 2005-06 0 
			 2004-05 0

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of employees in his Department are on a  (a) flexible working contract and  (b) job share employment contract.

Paul Goggins: Within the Northern Ireland Office staff are expected to work conditioned hours, however there is a considerable amount of flexibility in the way staff are permitted to work. Flexible working time (that is, a flexible start and finish each day) is available to the majority of staff where operational/business needs permit.
	In line with The Employment (NI) Order 2002 the Northern Ireland Office has processes in place to allow staff to request flexible working hours to enable them to balance their family and employment responsibilities.
	The following table shows the percentage of staff, in the Northern Ireland Office and its agencies, on a flexible working contract (reduced hours, term time full-time and term time part-time) or job share employment contract at 1 June 2009.
	
		
			   Staff on a flexible working contract 
			 Total number of employees 2,143 
			 Percentage of staff on flexible working contract 12.7 
			 Percentage of staff on job share contract 0.7

Departmental Flags

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department spent on  (a) purchasing and  (b) maintaining flags in each of the last five years.

Shaun Woodward: The Northern Ireland Office, including the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland, and excluding its agencies and NDPBs has had no expenditure on  (a) purchasing and  (b) maintaining flags in each of the last five years.

Departmental Furniture

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department spent on furniture in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: Expenditure on furniture in the last five years by the Northern Ireland Office, including the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland but excluding its Agencies and Executive NDPBs is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2004-05 200,540 
			 2005-06 188,670 
			 2006-07 325,440 
			 2007-08 339,774 
			 2008-09 233,359 
		
	
	The Northern Ireland Office procures furniture across a number of sites which are mainly located in Belfast and London. This furniture is required to facilitate staff in providing a quality service and the expenditure has been incurred in accordance with the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.

Departmental Operating Costs

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the running costs associated with his Department's Northern Ireland Information Service in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The following table shows the running costs associated with the Northern Ireland Information Service in each of the last five years.
	
		
			   Running costs (£) 
			 2008-09 2,264,937 
			 2007-08 1,580,513 
			 2006-07 2,337,542 
			 2005-06 1,771,136 
			 2004-05 2,117,072

Departmental Responsibilities

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the executive functions of his Department are.

Paul Goggins: Following the restoration of the Northern Ireland Assembly on 8 May 2007, the Northern Ireland Office retains responsibility for a range of the reserved and excepted policy matters set out in Schedules 2 and 3 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 and for executive functions within these areas.

Departmental Training

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many staff away days his Department  (a) held in 2008-09 and  (b) plans to hold in 2009-10.

Paul Goggins: In 2008-09 the Department held 15 development events for staff. Two events have taken place in 2009-10. Currently there are no other events planned for 2009 but further events would be organised if there is a business need.

Departmental Travel

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department spent on tickets for  (a) air and  (b) rail travel for (i) Ministers, (ii) special advisers and (iii) civil servants in his Department which were not used in each of the last three years.

Shaun Woodward: Details of rail and flight costs for 2008-09 are set out in the following tables. Information for earlier years could be gathered only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Travel costs 2008-09 
			  £ 
			   Rail  Flight 
			 Ministers 0 287.87 
			 Special advisers 0 0 
			 Staff 42.00 7,392.22 
		
	
	Where practical, staff in my Department book fully flexible and refundable tickets so as to reduce the cost of travel that is unavoidably cancelled.

Driving Offences: Insurance

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his estimate is of the number of uninsured vehicles in Northern Ireland.

Paul Goggins: I have made no such assessment. Regulations regarding the insurance requirements for vehicles are a matter for the Northern Ireland Administration.

Economic Situation

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions he has had with the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister on the effects of the recession on Northern Ireland.

Shaun Woodward: I have regular discussions with the First and Deputy First Minister on a range of issues relating to the economy in Northern Ireland.

Energy Supply

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions he has had with  (a) ministerial colleagues and  (b) the Northern Ireland Executive on the security of energy supply across the border with the Republic of Ireland.

Paul Goggins: Energy supply in Northern Ireland is a devolved matter and is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment. Energy supply and security has also been discussed at recent summit meetings of the British-Irish Council, attended by representatives of both the Government and the Northern Ireland Executive.

Fire and Ambulance Services

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  how many fire engines in Northern Ireland were  (a) damaged and  (b) taken out of service due to criminal acts in each month of the last five years; and at what cost to the public purse;
	(2)  how many ambulances in Northern Ireland were  (a) damaged and  (b) taken out of service due to criminal acts in each month of the last five years; and at what cost.

Paul Goggins: These are matters that are the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Administration.

Fire Services: Crimes of Violence

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps are being taken to protect fire service crews in Northern Ireland from attacks whilst on duty.

Paul Goggins: The safety of fire service crew is the responsibility of the fire and rescue service of Northern Ireland and is a matter for the Northern Ireland Administration.

Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment.

Shaun Woodward: I have no plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment.

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Firearms

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many complaints were made against Police Service of Northern Ireland officers relating to their use of firearms in the last five years.

Paul Goggins: Dealing with such complaints is the operational responsibility of the Office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland. I have asked the chief executive to reply to the hon. Member directly, and will arrange for a copy of the letter to be placed in the Library of the House.

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Reserve Forces

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions he has had with the Police Federation for Northern Ireland on the full-time police reserve.

Paul Goggins: The Secretary of State has met representatives of the Police Federation twice in the last six months to hear directly their views on areas of interest to their members, including their concerns about the continuing programme of phasing out of the Full-Time Reserve. The Federation is also in regular contact with officials, including at the quarterly meetings of the Police Advisory Board for Northern Ireland, at which the future of the FTR has been discussed.
	Decisions on the future of the Full-Time Reserve will continue to be made by the Chief Constable in light of his assessment of the security situation and policing needs.

Police Service of Northern Ireland: Training

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department plans to spend on  (a) Irish and  (b) Ulster Scots lessons for Police Service of Northern Ireland officers in 2009-10.

Paul Goggins: That is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Political Directorate: Operating Costs

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the running costs associated with his Department's political directorate in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The following table shows how much the Political Directorate of the Northern Ireland office has spent in running costs in each of the last five years.
	
		
			   Running costs (£) 
			 2008-09 11,404,448 
			 2007-08 6,136,998 
			 2006-07 6,852,184 
			 2005-06 7,214,155 
			 2004-05 6,838,692 
		
	
	The Political Directorate provides parliamentary and private office support to Ministers as well as policy support for the Northern Ireland political process and other issues including elections, human rights and public inquiries. In preparation for the completion of devolution, the directorate, which will form the core of the future NIO, has also taken management responsibility for relevant corporate services, hence the increase in expenditure in 2008-09.

Postal Boxes: Vandalism

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many post boxes in Northern Ireland were vandalised in each of the last 12 months.

Patrick McFadden: I have been asked to reply.
	The condition of Royal Mail's post boxes is an operational matter which is the direct responsibility of the company's management. I have therefore asked the chief executive of Royal Mail, Adam Crozier, to provide a direct reply to the hon. Member.
	A copy of the response will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Security Guards: Licensing

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many companies notified his Department of changes in security staff as required by Article 13(1) of Schedule 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each of the last five years.

Shaun Woodward: The Terrorism Act 2000 provisions fell in 2007 and were replaced by interim arrangements as set out in schedule 6 to the Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Act 2007. The numbers of companies notifying the Department of changes up to 2007 was as follows:
	
		
			   Number of companies notifying changes 
			 2004 49 
			 2005 38 
			 2006 51 
			 2007(1) 38 
			 (1) Only to 31 July. Arrangements as set out in the Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Act 2007 came into force on 1 August.

Terrorism

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking to reduce the level of criminal activity of loyalist groups which have decommissioned their arms.

Paul Goggins: I remain committed to seeking further reductions in all criminal activity by providing support to the PSNI and other law enforcement agencies including through the work of the Organised Crime Task Force.

Terrorism

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what reports he has received on progress in disbanding the command structures of loyalist paramilitary groups which have recently decommissioned their arms.

Paul Goggins: The 21st report of the independent monitoring commission stated that the UVF is in the process of downsizing and that most elements in the leadership of the UDA were seeking to downsize their organisation.

Weapons

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions he has had on personal protection weapons.

Paul Goggins: The PSNI have briefed the Secretary of State and myself on the outcome of the internal review of their policy on personal protection weapons, and we have held meetings with a number of political representatives on foot of requests received.

JUSTICE

Single Parents: Custodial Sentences

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent consideration he has given to the effects on dependent children of custodial sentences for single parents.

Maria Eagle: We have a significant programme of work across Government to meet the needs of offenders' children, many of whom are vulnerable, including:
	through the Think Family programme, ensuring key services are supporting them; and
	our plans to reduce the number of women in prison and provide additional community services, through £15.6 million of new funding.

Employment Tribunals

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of procedures for the enforcement of employment tribunal awards; and if he will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: The tribunals service recently undertook research into the enforcement of employment tribunal awards. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor (Jack Straw) made a statement on 19 May 2009 announcing the publication of this research and the measures that the Government are taking to improve the enforcement of these awards.

Correspondence

Dr. Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Oxford West and Abingdon on ways of working with non-governmental organisations to publicise the abolition of the offences of sedition and criminal libel in England and Wales.

Claire Ward: I apologise to the hon. Member for Oxford, West and Abingdon (Dr. Harris) for the delay in replying to his letter of 9 June 2009. He will by now have received from my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor (Jack Straw) a letter of 16 July 2009 which addresses the issue he raises.

International Criminal Law

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent representations he has received on the jurisdiction of UK courts over cases involving crimes under international law committed in other countries.

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent representations he has received on the jurisdiction of UK courts over cases involving crimes under international law committed in other countries.

Claire Ward: The Government receive representations from time to time about the jurisdiction of the UK courts for particular categories of crimes under international law. We have received representations recently about genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. We have responded positively to these representations.

Prison Officers

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the ratio of prison officers to prisoners was at HM Prison Wymott and HM Prison Garth in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: As at 31 May 2009, the ratio of prison officers to prisoners at HMP Wymott was 1:5.04. The ratio at HMP Garth was 1:3.4.
	This ratio refers to basic prison officer grades only-senior officer and principal officers are not included.

Family Courts

Judy Mallaber: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to increase public confidence in the operation of family courts.

Bridget Prentice: The Government are making good progress. In April, we changed court rules so that accredited media have the right to attend most family proceedings. We are also developing information pilots which will place anonymised judgments online, and we will be bringing forward legislation in the next session to revise reporting restrictions in the family courts to allow for greater reporting of family proceedings.

Interpretation Services

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what arrangements his Department makes for the provision of legal services to people requiring a sign language interpreter; and if he will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: The Ministry of Justice has a strong commitment to disability equality in the delivery of its services. Courts and tribunals can provide British sign language and other sign language interpreters for hearings and will meet the reasonable costs of these. In addition, where necessary the Legal Services Commission's rules allow (for those clients who are eligible) for sign language interpreter costs to be met from legal aid.

Constitutional Renewal Bill

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what progress has been made on the Constitutional Renewal Bill; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Wills: The Government introduced the Constitutional Reform and Governance Bill in the House of Commons on 20 July 2009.

Electoral Reform

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent assessment he has made of the merits of proposals for reform of the electoral system for general elections.

Michael Wills: Last year the Government published a review of voting systems. It considers the experience of the voting systems introduced in the United Kingdom since 1997. It found that there is no definitive evidence that one system is better or worse than another.
	The debate over the respective merits of different electoral systems continues and last month, the Prime Minister confirmed that the Government will be setting out proposals for taking this debate forward.

Complaints: Budgets

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the  (a) resource and  (b) capital budget of the Office for Legal Complaints is for 2009-10.

Bridget Prentice: The Office for Legal Complaints (OLC) was formed on 1 July 2009 and will not be fully operational until 2010 and so financial plans are still in the process of being finalised. The resource budget for the OLC in 2009-10 currently stands at £6 million and capital budget is £0 million. However, these figures will be reviewed for the winter estimates. The OLC is in the process of finalising its business plan, which will provide further clarity over the capital and resource split for the 2009-10 and 2010-11 years. However, the implementation and running costs for the OLC will be recovered through a levy on the legal profession.

Patrick Brendon Smith

Edward Timpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what Oasys categorisation was applied to Patrick Brendon Smith following his release from the sentence imposed by Preston Crown Court in October 2008;
	(2)  on what occasions Patrick Brendon Smith breached the terms of his post-release licence following his release from the sentence imposed by Preston Crown Court in October 2008;
	(3)  whether a serious case review has been held following the conviction of Patrick Brendon Smith for two offences of grooming.

Jack Straw: With regard to the Oasys risk categorisation and any breaches of licence, the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) does not ordinarily, having due regard to relevant legislation, disclose operational details about how it is managing an individual offender. However, there has been extensive public interest in the case. In these circumstances, I can inform the hon. Gentleman of the following:
	 Oasys categorisation:
	Following his release from the sentence imposed by Preston Crown Court in October 2008, the Oasys categorisation for Patrick Smith was 'medium' risk of re-offending and medium risk of serious harm to children and the public. (The risk of serious harm classification was subsequently raised to 'high' when further information about the offender came to light.)
	 Breach of terms of licence:
	In November 2008, the Probation Area then supervising Mr. Smith decided to issue a written warning to him following a breach of the rules of residence in the approved premises in which he was required to reside as a condition of licence. (There were no other breaches of licence prior to his recall to prison following his arrest for the serious further offence.)
	 Serious further offence review:
	A serious further offence review has been undertaken on this case, in line with the requirements of Probation Circular 22/2008. It was completed on 1 July 2009 and has been quality assured by the Public Protection Unit (PPU) in the National Offender Management Service (NOMS). The Probation Areas involved in the management of the offender will be reporting to the PPU on progress in addressing the learning points from the review by 18 December 2009.
	The Government take all cases of serious further offending by offenders under supervision very seriously indeed. I have asked to be kept informed of progress in addressing the concerns which arose in this particular case.

Anti-terrorism Control Orders

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost to the public purse has been of each legal action in respect of which proceedings have been completed in which a person subject to a control order has challenged its terms.

Bridget Prentice: Legal aid funding is available under the Community Legal Service (CLS) administered by the Legal Services Commission (LSC). According to records supplied by the LSC, 24 certificates have been granted to challenge the terms of control orders made under the Prevention of Terrorism Act 2005. Of these, only nine cases have concluded and the total amounts paid under each certificate is as follows.
	£201,416
	£7,910
	£14,486
	£84,434
	£6,118
	£6,817
	£7,642
	£11,025
	£12,271
	These figures include solicitors' costs, counsels' fees, disbursements and VAT, where applicable. Costs in some of these cases may include costs of appeal proceedings up to and including appeals to the House of Lords. Costs of judicial reviews are not included, as these cannot be separately identified.
	It is not possible to identify the court costs to Her Majesty's Court Service (HMCS) as the administrative costs for these proceedings are not recorded separately from the costs of other proceedings.
	The Ministry of Justice does not hold information on how much it costs the state to defend challenges made to the terms of a control order.

Aviation

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many convictions there were for endangering the safety of an aircraft in each of the last 10 years;
	(2)  how many offenders received a  (a) fine,  (b) community penalty and  (c) custodial sentence upon conviction for endangering the safety of an aircraft in 2008; and what the average (i) fine and (ii) custodial sentence imposed in such cases was.

Jack Straw: The number of defendants found guilty at all courts in England and Wales for endangering the safety of an aircraft, 1998 to 2007 (latest available) is shown in table 1.
	Sentencing statistics for 2008 are not available until later in the year therefore data for 2007 are shown in table 2.
	The statistics given relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. For example, when a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
	Court proceedings data for 2008 will be available in autumn 2009.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of defendants found guilty at all courts in England and Wales for offences relating to the endangerment of aircraft, from 1998 to 2007( 1, 2) 
			  Statue/offence  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			  Statutes-Aviation Security Act 1982: 7 10 8 3 9 1 1 1 0 0 
			 Section 1: Seizing an aircraft in flight by unlawful use of force or threats by person on board the aircraft   
			 Section 2: Destroying, damaging or endangering safety of aircraft   
			 Section 3: Other acts of endangering or likely to endanger safety of aircraft   
			 Section 6: Inducing or assisting in the commission of an offence outside the UK   
			
			  Statutes: n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 4 3 1 6 
			 Air Navigation Order 2000 Articles 63 and 122(6) and schedule 12(C)   
			 Air Navigation Order 2005 Articles 73 and 148(7) and Schedule 14(C)   
			 Recklessly or negligently acting in a manner likely to endanger an aircraft or any person therein   
			 n/a = Not applicable. (1) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: Office for Criminal Justice Reform: Evidence and Analysis Unit. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Offenders sentenced for endangering safety of an aircraft( 1) , 2007 
			   Number 
			 Fine(2) 2 
			 Community sentence 1 
			 Suspended sentence 1 
			 Immediate custody(3) 2 
			 Total sentenced 6 
			 (1) Air Navigation Order 2005: Endangering safety of aircraft. (2) One fine of £100 and one of £150 (3) One immediate custodial sentence of 8.0 months and one of 12.0 months.  Notes: 1. These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system. 2. These data are presented on the principal offence basis. Where an offender has been sentenced for more than one offence, the principal offence is the one for which the heaviest sentence was imposed. Where the same sentence has been imposed for two or more offences, the principal offence is the one for which the statutory maximum is most severe.  Source: OMS Analytical Services, Ministry of Justice.

Cannabis: Fines

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many fines for cannabis possession remained unpaid  (a) six and  (b) 12 months after issue in each of the last five years.

Bridget Prentice: Information on paid, part paid and unpaid fines for offences of possessing cannabis is not collected centrally. Information on the enforcement rate of financial penalties imposed by courts is held but cannot identify the originating offence.
	It is therefore not possible to establish how many fines remain unpaid over the last five years for cannabis possession.
	The overall payment rate for all financial penalties in the financial year to July 2009 is 82 per cent.

Consultants

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much the Office for Criminal Justice Reform spent on  (a) external consultants,  (b) public opinion research and  (c) communications in the last year for which information is available.

Jack Straw: In 2008-09, OCJR spent £14.7 million on external consultants, including specialists working on the development of cross CJS information technology and cross CJS projects, £1.9 million on public opinion research, of which, £1.4 million is for the Witness and Victims Experience Survey (WAVES) of the criminal justice system used to underpin the public service agreement; and £2.3 million on communications including staff costs, the costs of the CJS online website, Inside Justice week and the costs of corporate publications and leaflets.

Crime Act 2002

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the monetary value was of defence costs orders arising from cases determined by the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 in  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009 to date.

Bridget Prentice: Data are not currently collected on the volume of Recovery of Defence Costs Orders (RDCOs) made in respect of cases under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. This level of information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	The Legal Services Commission does collect data on the overall number and monetary value of RDCOs made and this detail is set out in the following table.
	
		
			   Number of RDCOs made  Value of RDCOs made (£ million) 
			 2006-07 330 4.2 
			 2007-08 220 6.0 
		
	
	The figures are not yet available for 2008-09.

Departmental Accountancy

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects to publish his Department's resource accounts for 2008-09.

Michael Wills: The Ministry of Justice resource accounts have been laid before the House of Commons today. The resource accounts will be made available on the MOJ website shortly after and published within a month.

Departmental Consultants

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much  (a) his Department and its predecessor and  (b) its agencies spent on consultants in each year since 1997.

Jack Straw: The information requested is as follows.
	 Consultants
	The Ministry of Justice was formed on the 9 May 2007. This merger included the former Department of Constitutional Affairs and the National Offender Management Service (NOMS). NOMS previously formed part of the Home Office. The following information is fragmented due to Machinery of Government and organisational changes. The Ministry of Justice do not hold data in relation to the National Offender Management (NOMS) for years prior to the Machinery of Government change in 2007-08. For this reason, NOMS consultancy costs, prior to 2007-08 cannot be provided in this answer.
	While it appears possible to get detail of consultancy spend for the whole Home Office before the Machinery of Government change on 9 May 2007, it is not possible to get the spend relating to just those sections that are now part of the Ministry of Justice as these figures are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	 (a) Subject to the above, the Department and its predecessors spent the following amounts on consultancy in each accounting year:
	
		
			  Ministry of Justice (MOJ) 2007-08 to 2008-09 
			  Accounting year  £  m illion 
			 2008-09 (1)53.6 
			 2007-08 56.0 
			 (1 )Provisional. This figure was an early estimate and has been extrapolated based on the nine month actual position. The 2008-09 consultancy figure will be finalised following a manual data collection exercise for April 2008 to March 2009. This exercise is scheduled to commence in the summer of 2009, with a target date for availability on 31 October 2009.  Note: The figures between 2007-08 and 2008-09 are based on spend provided from the Department's systems. These figures do not include the Office of the Public Guardian. 
		
	
	
		
			  Department of Constitutional Affairs (DCA) 2003-04 to 2006-07 
			  Accounting year  £  m illion 
			 2006-07 10.7 
			 2005-06 15.5 
			 2004-05 10.6 
			 2003-04 9.0 
		
	
	
		
			  The Lord Chancellors Department (LCD) 1997-08 to 2002-03 
			  Accounting year  £ million 
			 2002-03 5.7 
			 2001-02 6.5 
		
	
	Due to the organisation reshuffle of the former Lord Chancellor's Department, figures prior to 2001-02 are unavailable and can be obtained only via disproportionate costs.
	 (b) The figures above can be broken down into spend by individual agencies as follows:
	 Ministry of Justice (MOJ) 2008-09
	A breakdown of MOJ consultancy costs by agency(1) for 2008-09 is not yet available. A manual data collection exercise for the period April 2008 to March 2009 is scheduled to commence in the summer of 2009 with a target date for the availability of the full data set on 31 October 2009.
	(1) The 2008-09 breakdown will highlight the Ministry of Justice, National Offender Management Services and HM Prison Services spend only. Lower level breakdown of the 2008-09 data by agency can be obtained only via disproportionate costs.
	
		
			  Ministry of Justice (MOJ) 2007-08 
			   £ million 
			 Ministry of Justice 36.0 
			 National Offender Management Services and HM Prison Services 20.0 
			 Total 56.0 
		
	
	Lower level breakdown of the 2007-08 data by agency can be obtained only via disproportionate costs.
	
		
			  Department of Constitutional Affairs (DCA) 2003-04 to 2006-07 
			  £ million 
			   2005-06  2006-07 
			 Department of Constitutional Affairs 10.1 6.6 
			 HM Court Service 5.0 3.3 
			 Tribunals Service 0.4 0.6 
			 Office of the Public Guardian 0.05 0.2 
			 Total 15.5 10.7 
		
	
	Between 2003-04 and 2004-05 a breakdown of DCA's (formally LCD's) consultancy costs by agencies can be obtained only via disproportionate costs.
	 Lord Chancellors Office (LCD) 1997-08 to 2002-03
	Between 2001-02 and 2002-03 a breakdown of LCD's consultancy costs by agencies can be obtained only via disproportionate costs.

Departmental Dismissal

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many members of staff at each pay band in  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies have been suspended (i) on full pay and (ii) on sick pay for (A) over 12 months, (B) between six and 12 months and (C) between three and six months, broken down by pay band.

Jack Straw: For the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) excluding the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), the number of staff currently suspended on full pay is 20, see table.
	
		
			  Length of suspension 
			  Pay band  Over 12 months  Between 6 and 12 months  Between 3 and 6 months  Up to three months  Total 
			 A - - - - - 
			 B - - 1 - 1 
			 C - - - - - 
			 D - - 1 5 6 
			 E - - 3 9 12 
			 F - - - 1 1 
			 Total - - 5 15 20 
		
	
	For those staff on sick pay the information is not held centrally in a format that would enable us to answer this part of the question without incurring disproportionate cost.
	The National Offender Management Service does not hold any of the detailed information centrally in a format that would enable us to answer this question without incurring disproportionate cost. I have given instructions that this information must in future be collected.

Departmental Manpower

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the change in the employee headcount in  (a) his Department and  (b) each of its agencies in the next 12 months.

Jack Straw: In October 2008, the Ministry of Justice announced controls on recruitment to enable the Department to drive out inefficiencies and look strategically at where we have skills gaps and how to manage our people more effectively across the business.
	We estimate a reduction of 1,135 in the Full Time Equivalent (FTE) headcount between March 2009 and 2010. This estimate does not include information relating to the Land Registry, National Archives, Scotland Office, Wales Office or National Probation Service, where responsibility for staffing lies with each individual body.
	The table breaks down the changes in Full Time Equivalent headcount by agency. The figures include employees and agency/interim staff.
	These figures are projections; as with all projections, future operational and policy decisions will also influence what actually happens. The information provided in this answer is not part of the Department's Official Statistics and is not covered by the Code of Practice for Official statistics.
	
		
			  Estimated change in FTEs over the 12 months to 31 March 2010 
			   Reduction of: 
			 MoJHQ (1)80 
			 NOMS(2) 750 
			 HMCS 205 
			 Tribunals Service 65 
			 Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) 35 
			 (1) Full Time Equivalents. (2) The figures for NOMS refer to HQ and directly employed staff in public sector prisons only. They do not include the National Probation Service where the responsibility for staffing lies with the 42 areas and trusts who employ these staff.

Departmental Manpower

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people were employed by  (a) his Department and  (b) each of its agencies at the latest date for which figures are available.

Jack Straw: The Office for National Statistics publish public sector employment statistics quarterly. The latest available data are from 31 March 2009, and are set out in the table.
	The table provides full-time equivalent (FTE) figures for the Department as published by the ONS.
	
		
			   FTEs as at 31 March 2009 
			 MOJ HQ 2,990 
			 NOMS(1) 51,060 
			 HMCS 19,100 
			 Tribunals Service 2,810 
			 Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) 360 
			 Land Registry 6,930 
			 National Archives 620 
			 Scotland Office 90 
			 Wales Office 60 
			 Total 84,020 
			 (1) The figures for the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) refer to HQ and directly employed staff in public sector prisons only. They do not include the National Probation Service where the responsibility for staffing lies with the 42 areas and trusts who employ these staff

Drugs: Prisons

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prison officers at each prison have been  (a) dismissed,  (b) charged and  (c) convicted for smuggling drugs into prison in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: Central National Offender Management Service (NOMS) records show six prison officers have been dismissed under the internal disciplinary procedures for bringing drugs into a prison since January 2005.
	
		
			   Number of staff dismissed 
			 2005 3 
			 2007 2 
			 2008 1 
		
	
	NOMS has accepted and implemented the Blakey report on disrupting the supply of illicit drugs and mobile phones into prisons and is determined to address this security threat. In line with Blakey's recommendations, we are using legislation where appropriate to deal with prisoners, visitors or staff who attempt to smuggle such items. There are a range of offences used to prosecute staff in these circumstances, including misconduct in public office, possession with intent to supply, and the offences created by the Offender Management Act 2007 which attract tough penalties of up to 10 years imprisonment and an unlimited fine.
	We do not, though, record information in the form requested. To do so would incur disproportionate cost. However, we are taking steps to record more detailed information in this area.

Employment Tribunals Service

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many actions under employment law have been brought against his Department in each of the last three years; how many such actions were brought under each category of action; and how many such actions were contested by his Department at an employment tribunal.

Jack Straw: The data are only held centrally for the two years since the creation of the Ministry of Justice. To obtain the data now for the year 2006-07 would incur disproportionate costs.
	In each of the last two years, the following numbers of claims were issued at the Employment Tribunal against the Ministry of Justice:
	
		
			   Number of claims 
			  2007-08  
			 Total Claims issued 306 
			 Age Discrimination 19 
			 Disability Discrimination 41 
			 Equal Pay 58 
			 Maternity Leave Pay 1 
			 Non-standard Casework 1 
			 Pension Rights 2 
			 Race Discrimination 16 
			 Sexual Discrimination 35 
			 Sexual Orientation Discrimination 1 
			 Terms of Employment 3 
			 Trade Union Activity 3 
			 TUPE 1 
			 Unfair/Constructive Dismissal 91 
			 Wages Claim 28 
			 Whistleblowing 4 
			 Working Time Regulations 2 
			   
			  2008-09  
			 Total Claims issued 215 
			 Age Discrimination 5 
			 Disability Discrimination 34 
			 Equal Pay 3 
			 Maternity Leave Pay 1 
			 Non-standard Casework 4 
			 Other 5 
			 Race Discrimination 13 
			 Sexual Discrimination 27 
			 Sexual Orientation Discrimination 1 
			 Terms of Employment 8 
			 Trade Union Activity 4 
			 Unfair/Constructive Dismissal 88 
			 Wages Claim 20 
			 Working Time Regulations 2 
		
	
	In 2007-08 the MoJ employed 78,789 people and in 2008-09, 81,402.
	All of these claims were defended by the Ministry at the initial stage in the process, although some were subsequently settled. The outcome of these Employment Tribunals for 2007-08 and 2008-09 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   MoJ Won  MoJ Lost  Settled  Outstanding  Total 
			  2007-08  
			 Age Discrimination 6 0 3 10 19 
			 Disability Discrimination 16 0 11 14 41 
			 Equal Pay 2 0 0 (1)56 58 
			 Maternity Leave Pay 0 0 1 0 1 
			 Non-Standard Casework 0 0 1 0 1 
			 Pension Rights 2 0 0 0 2 
			 Race Discrimination 10 1 0 5 16 
			 Sexual Discrimination 11 1 7 16 35 
			 Sexual Orientation Discrimination 0 0 1 0 1 
			 Terms of Employment 0 0 0 3 3 
			 Trade Union Activity 3 0 0 0 3 
			 TUPE 1 0 0 0 1 
			 Unfair/Constructive Dismissal 38 2 25 26 91 
			 Wages Claim 10 1 10 7 28 
			 Whistleblowing 0 1 1 2 4 
			 Working Time Regulations 0 0 1 1 2 
			 Total 99 6 61 140 306 
			   
			  2008-09  
			 Age Discrimination 0 0 0 5 5 
			 Disability Discrimination 5 0 4 25 34 
			 Equal Pay 0 0 0 3 3 
			 Maternity Leave Pay 0 0 0 1 1 
			 Non-Standard Casework 0 0 1 3 4 
			 Other 1 0 1 3 5 
			 Pension Rights 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Race Discrimination 4 0 2 7 13 
			 Sexual Discrimination 3 0 4 20 27 
			 Sexual Orientation Discrimination 0 0 0 1 1 
			 Terms of Employment 1 0 0 7 8 
			 Trade Union Activity 2 0 0 2 4 
			 TUPE 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Unfair/Constructive Dismissal 18 0 9 61 88 
			 Wages Claim 7 0 3 10 20 
			 Whistleblowing 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Working Time Regulations 0 0 1 1 2 
			 Total 41 0 25 149 215 
			 (1) 19 of these cases showing as outstanding have actually been finalised, but the outcomes have not yet been updated. The results are awaited from the Treasury Solicitor. 
		
	
	The data for the number of cases contested at an Employment Tribunal hearing are not held centrally and it would incur disproportionate cost to obtain them.

Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment.

Jack Straw: I have no current plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer recess but I am always happy to consider invitations, including from the hon. Member.

Information Tribunal

Eleanor Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many information tribunals have sat in each year since 2004.

Bridget Prentice: The number of Information Tribunal appeals which reached a conclusion in each year since 2004 is shown in the following table. The figures include oral and paper hearings and withdrawn appeals.
	
		
			  Number of information tribunal appeals cleared 
			   Appeals 
			 2004-05 0 
			 2005-06 18 
			 2006-07 62 
			 2007-08 123 
			 2008-09 113 
			 2009(1) 37 
			 (1) From 1 April to 30 June

Information Tribunal

Eleanor Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many information tribunals have sat  (a) in public and  (b) other than in public in each year since 2004.

Bridget Prentice: Information Tribunals are ordinarily held in public but individual sessions of the hearing will sometimes need to be held in private. If private sessions are considered necessary, the Tribunal Chairman will advise the parties of the reasons for doing so.
	The Information Tribunal does not keep detailed records of the number of sessions that are held in camera. This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost by carrying out a manual check of each case file to establish the status of each session of each hearing.

Information Tribunal

Eleanor Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what legal costs were incurred by the Information Commissioner in respect of the Information Tribunal hearing in relation to the request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 by Mr. Martin Sixsmith.

Michael Wills: The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is the independent authority which enforces compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
	The total cost to the ICO for counsel in the recent Information Tribunal case "Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government v IC" was £7,606.38. In addition, considerable time was spent on the case by the ICO's own in-house solicitors.
	This information was provided by the ICO.

Legal Aid

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what representations the Legal Services Commission has received on the ability of law firms to deliver legally-aided criminal defence services following the implementation of best value tendering in 2010.

Bridget Prentice: The Legal Services Commission (LSC) received 1,503 responses from representative bodies, individual practitioners and other interested parties, to its consultation exercise on proposals to introduce Best Value Tendering (BVT) of criminal defence services in the police station and magistrates court.
	My noble Friend Lord Bach's written ministerial statement of 20 July 2009 announced the publication of the Legal Services Commission's (LSC) response to consultation on BVT. A copy of the consultation response and accompanying impact assessment has been placed in the House Library. The documents are also available on the consultation section of the LSC website at:
	www.legalservices.gov.uk

Legal Aid

Eleanor Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was spent on the administration of legal aid in each of the last 12 years.

Bridget Prentice: The Legal Services Commission's (LSC) administration expenditure in each of the last 12 years is shown in the table. The costs to the courts for administering the grant and payment of legal aid is not recorded separately.
	
		
			  Total LSC administration expenditure 
			   £ million 
			 1996-97 53.8 
			 1997-98 57.5 
			 1998-99 59.9 
			 1999-2000 62.4 
			 2000-01 72.4 
			 2001-02 71.6 
			 2002-03 73.4 
			 2003-04 90.2 
			 2004-05 102.7 
			 2005-06 96.8 
			 2006-07 114.4 
			 2007-08 132.5

Legal Aid: Foreigners

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what expenditure his Department has incurred on legal aid payments to foreign nationals involved in cases before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission in each of the last seven years.

Jack Straw: The Legal Services Commission did not specifically collate costs data on SIAC expenditure prior to the 7 July 2005 terrorist incidents in London.
	Expenditure in subsequent financial years, and from April 2009 to June 2009 was as follows:
	
		
			   £000 
			 2006-07 385 
			 2007-08 731 
			 2008-09 889 
			 2009-10 154

Legal Services Commission

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will hold discussions with the Legal Services Commission on its procedures for best value tendering; and if he will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: My noble Friend Lord Bach the Minister for Legal Aid routinely discusses a wide range of issues with the Legal Services Commission including best value tendering.
	My noble Friend Lord Bach's written ministerial statement of 20 July 2009 announced the publication of the Legal Services Commission's (LSC) response to consultation on Best Value Tendering of criminal defence services.
	A copy of the consultation response and accompanying impact assessment has been placed in the House Library. The documents are also available on the consultation section of the LSC website at:
	www.legalservices.gov.uk

Magistrates Courts: Costs

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many magistrates clerks were employed in each of the last three years; and how much was spent on employing them in each such year.

Jack Straw: The title "Magistrates' Clerk" is a historic title and no longer used in magistrates court. Justice clerks and legal advisers fulfil the roles closest to that of a magistrates clerk, although the role is not directly comparable and both fulfil different functions. I provide in the tables the requested figures for both justice clerks and legal advisers.
	
		
			  Legal advisers 
			   2006-07( 1)  2007-08  2008-09 
			  Region  FTE( 2)  Salary cost (£)  FTE  Salary cost (£)  FTE  Salary cost (£) 
			 North West 277.2 13,207,859 283.4 14,195,555 283.5 15,101,933 
			 Midlands - - 322.3 16,555,657 316.5 17,183,678 
			 Wales 66.2 2,898,648 119.6 5,012,338 115 4,600,768 
			 North East 292 14,494,319 292 14,965,814 288 15,147,267 
			 South West 203.4 9,526,406 200.9 9,702,375 200.9 10,355,665 
		
	
	
		
			  Justices' clerk 
			   2006- 07( 1)  2007-08  2008-09 
			  Region  FTE  Salary cost(£)  FTE  Salary cost (£)  FTE  Salary cost(£) 
			 North West 5 514,298 3 324,820 3 341,916 
			 Midlands - - 15 1,585,578 11 1,412,1 10 
			 Wales 3 316,120 8 818,324 5 518,588 
			 North East 10 992,912 9.5 972,075 7 744,408 
			 South West 10 1,051,987 10 1,095,269 6.2 719,574 
		
	
	It has not been possible to provide exact staff numbers or the breakdown in salary costs for legal advisers and justice clerks for London and the South East region. Further work is taking place to extract this information from local data. I will write to the hon. Member with this information when this has been completed. The following table shows the combined salary costs for legal advisers and justice clerks in London and the South East.
	
		
			  Salary cost (£) 
			  Region  2006-07( 1)  2007-08  2008-09 
			 London - 17,089,462 17,449,073 
			 South East - 18,223,171 17,892,698 
		
	
	(1) Historical pay data are not held on the HR information system in HMCS and due to a change in accounting procedures brought in across HMCS on 1 April 2007 some regions have not been able to provide this information for 2006-07 from their records.
	(2) Staff numbers are quoted as full-time equivalent in post.

Mass Media

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how much his Department and its predecessors spent on  (a) commissioning of public opinion research and  (b) contracts with press monitoring services in each of the last five years;
	(2)  what the cost of contracts between his Department's  (a) agencies and  (b) non-departmental public bodies' and press monitoring services was in each of the last five years.

Jack Straw: Details of the available information on expenditure on public opinion research and organisations providing media monitoring services in the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and its predecessor are provided in the following table.
	
		
			  Table 1: Public opinion research 
			   £ 
			  Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA)  
			 2004-05 1,410,000 
			 2005-06 1,654,000 
			 2006-07 219,000 
			   
			  Ministry of Justice (created in May 2007)  
			 2007-08 3,086,000 
			 2008-09 2,945,000 
			  Note: Figures shown are estimates including VAT and are based on a collation of local returns as no central records are available. They include NDPBs. 
		
	
	The reason for the fluctuation of spend reflects a smaller research programme in 2006-07. The figures in 2007-08 and 2008-09 for the Ministry of Justice reflect the inclusion of Public Opinion Research for the Office of Criminal Justice Reform and National Offender Management Service.
	
		
			  Table 2: Press monitoring 
			   Press cuttings (£) 
			  Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA)  
			 2003-04 50,344.00 
			 2004-05 48,641.00 
			 2005-06 59,606.61 
			 2006-07 20,548.55 
			   
			  Ministry of Justice (created in May 2007)  
			 2007-08 56,662.93 
		
	
	The reason for the fluctuation in spend between 2005-06, 2006-07 and 2007-08 is due to a revision of the cuttings specification. For 2006-07 the specification was significantly narrowed and this resulted in fewer cuttings being charged to the Department. However, due to the creation of the Ministry of Justice in May 2007, the cuttings specification was widened to cover the additional subjects covered by the new Ministry and an increase in national and regional press.
	The following figures are for costs of press monitoring services for the Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs). The Ministry of Justice was created in May 2007. Figures before this relate to expenditure under previous Departments.
	 Executive Agencies :
	 National Offender Management service (NOMS)
	The cost of press monitoring for NOMS from May 2007 is incorporated in the MoJ cost. Press monitoring costs for NOMS prior to May 2007 were paid by the Home Office.
	 Her Majesty's Court Service (HMCS)
	Created in April 2005. Since 2005, HMCS press monitoring services have been part of DCA/MoJ contracts.
	 Office of the Public Guardian (OPG)
	The Office of the Public Guardian formed on 1 October 2007, replacing the Public Guardianship Office.
	
		
			  Office of the Public Guardian 
			   Durrants (press cuttings service) (£) 
			 2006-07 6,118.70 
			 2007-08 7,118.74 
		
	
	 Tribunals Service
	The Tribunals Service was created in April 2006, as an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice. The Press Association and Meltwater News provide the Tribunals Service with press monitoring services. To date they have paid in total £6,564.63 to PA; and £4,136 to Meltwater News.
	 National Archives
	The National Archives is a non-ministerial department and executive agency of the Ministry of Justice. The finance documents pre-2006 are kept off-site in a repository in Cheshire, and it would incur disproportionate cost to recover them. Following figures are provided for 2006 onwards.
	
		
			  National Archives 
			  £ 
			   Cision (media management)  Cision (clippings and media monitoring)  Meltwater News  Total 
			 2006-07 23,446.00 220.00 0.00 23,666.00 
			 2007-08 11,660.00 13,169.00 5,288.00 24,829.00 
		
	
	 NDPBs :
	 Boundary Commission-England
	No spend.
	 Boundary Commission-Wales Office
	No spend.
	 Her Majesty's Land Registry (HMLR)
	
		
			  Her Majesty's Land Registry (HMLR) 
			   Durrants (press cuttings service) (£) 
			 2003-04 13,175.31 
			 2004-05 15,052.92 
			 2005-06 19,537.24 
			 2006-07 28,751.35 
			 2007-08 28,035.64 
		
	
	 Legal Services Commission (LSC)
	
		
			  Legal Services Commission (LSC) 
			   Durrants (press cuttings service) (£) 
			 2003-04 0.00 
			 2004-05 13,333.47 
			 2005-06 24,038.20 
			 2006-07 24,170.03 
			 2007-08 27,159.00 
		
	
	The costs for the Legal Services Commission and Her Majesty's Land Registry increased primarily because there was more media relevant to their work which needed to be monitored. For Her Majesty's Land Registry, a key case of this was the launch in October 2006 of the monthly House Price Index.
	 Judicial Appointments Commission
	The JAC does not hold its own contracts with press monitoring services; instead they are served by the Judicial Communications Office contract.
	Press monitoring services include clippings of newspaper articles, compiled on a daily basis, that are relevant to the Department. The Government's Central Office of Information's Media Monitoring Unit provides a press summary service for the Department, but also includes broadcast coverage in these summaries. It is not possible to breakdown the cost of MMU summaries between press monitoring and monitoring of other media. It is important to monitor the climate of opinion and the evolving views of commentators and the media to ensure that policy development takes place in the fullest context and the Department is well placed to respond to events. Press and media monitoring is one way to do this and also provides useful instant feedback on announcements.

National Offender Management Service: Finance

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much of the projected £30 million savings from the Specification, Benchmarking and Costing (SBC) Programme are expected to be made by  (a) the Probation Service and  (b) the Prison Service; and what the SBC expenditure reduction targets are for each service.

Maria Eagle: The Specification, Benchmarking and Costing (SBC) Programme is targeted to deliver more than £50 million of savings during 2009-10. The target for probation is £21 million and prisons £32 million. The probation savings will be achieved through the work of the SBC programme but also supported by the Probation Trust Programme and the introduction of best value.
	Further savings are anticipated in future years from the SBC programme and work is currently ongoing to define and quantify the potential costs, benefits and impact.

National Offender Management Service: Finance

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much of the projected £117 million savings for the National Offender Management Service is expected to be made by  (a) the Probation Service,  (b) the Prison Service and  (c) National Offender Management Service headquarters.

Maria Eagle: The National Offender Management Service has plans in place to achieve savings of £171 million in 2009-10. The savings will be realised through a range of programmes and initiatives to ensure that offender management is delivered effectively and efficiently.
	A broad description of the savings is given in the table.
	
		
			  Initiative  Description  Planned saving 2009-10 (£ million) 
			 Specification, Benchmarking and Costing Programme (prisons) Achieving better value for money by reducing unnecessary variation in service provisions in prisons 32 
			 Regional and National HQ structures Streamlining and restructuring 20 
			 Specification, Benchmarking and Costing Programme (probation) Achieving better value for money by reducing unnecessary variation in service provisions in probation 21 
			 Spending Plan Adjustments Adjustments to spending plans to take account of reducing inflation and lower VAT 12 
			 Management reductions and delayering Reforms to workforce structures for new uniformed staff and reducing management costs in public prisons. 16 
			 Other Savings Including, greater efficiency in the Capacity Programme; further procurement improvement; a reduction in non-essential maintenance; prison clustering; modernising staff rostering processes and restructuring training services 70 
			 Total  171

National Probation Service for England and Wales: Manpower

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average ratio of  (a) probation staff to offenders and  (b) offender managers to offenders was in each probation service area in each year since 1997.

Maria Eagle: The information requested is shown in the following table for the years 2004 to 2007 inclusive. Reliable offender caseload data by probation service area are not available prior to 2004.
	
		
			  (a) The average ratio of probation staff to offenders, by each probation service area in England and Wales at 31 December in each year from 2004-07 
			  Area  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 Avon and Somerset 8.1 7.8 8.1 9.4 
			 Bedfordshire 13.8 12.0 10.7 11.5 
			 Cambridgeshire 10.2 10.9 11.2 12.8 
			 Cheshire 8.0 8.7 10.0 10.2 
			 Cumbria 11.2 9.9 9.5 10.9 
			 Derbyshire 10.7 10.6 10.7 10.8 
			 Devon and Cornwall 8.4 7.9 8.0 7.8 
			 Dorset 7.8 7.9 9.1 9.2 
			 Durham 7.8 8.0 8.8 10.0 
			 Dyfed Powys 8.7 8.1 6.9 8.1 
			 Essex 10.8 10.7 12.6 14.2 
			 Gloucestershire 9.0 9.4 9.4 10.2 
			 Gwent 10.6 9.5 9.6 10.1 
			 Hampshire 10.5 10.1 10.3 10.6 
			 Hertfordshire 12.9 13.1 13.1 12.3 
			 Humberside 8.5 8.3 8.9 9.9 
			 Kent 10.1 9.9 11.0 12.2 
			 Lancashire 10.1 11.1 12.7 13.6 
			 Leicestershire 7.8 7.9 8.3 8.2 
			 Lincolnshire 8.9 8.2 8.0 8.3 
			 London 14.2 16.3 14.5 15.7 
			 Greater Manchester 11.0 11.2 11.5 13.1 
			 Merseyside 11.9 13.2 13.8 13.3 
			 Norfolk 9.6 8.6 8.6 8.8 
			 North Wales 9.4 9.9 11.0 12.4 
			 North Yorkshire 8.7 10.1 10.0 9.2 
			 Northamptonshire 10.4 10.0 9.0 10.2 
			 Northumbria 8.5 8.9 9.9 10.6 
			 Nottinghamshire 11.3 10.2 9.3 10.2 
			 South Wales 11.0 10.3 10.2 10.6 
			 South Yorkshire 9.6 9.7 10.3 10.6 
			 Staffordshire 9.0 9.2 9.8 10.0 
			 Suffolk 8.1 8.4 8.6 9.3 
			 Surrey 7.0 6.8 7.6 7.5 
			 Sussex 13.2 11.2 11.8 14.6 
			 Teesside 11.2 10.3 11.3 11.5 
			 Thames Valley 8.8 9.5 10.3 10.7 
			 Warwickshire 8.8 8.1 9.3 10.5 
			 West Mercia 9.0 10.0 9.7 9.9 
			 West Midlands 14.7 13.5 13.2 13.1 
			 West Yorkshire 10.2 10.6 10.5 10.5 
			 Wiltshire 10.1 8.7 9.2 9.1 
			 Total 10.7 10.9 11.0 11.6 
			  Note: Figures provided are full-time equivalent 
		
	
	
		
			  (b) The average ratio of offender managers to offenders, by each probation service area in England and Wales at 31 December in each year from 2004-07 
			  Area  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 Avon and Somerset 26.0 24.8 23.0 25.7 
			 Bedfordshire 41.1 35.3 32.7 32.1 
			 Cambridgeshire 29.0 33.2 32.5 35.3 
			 Cheshire 24.3 26.2 29.2 32.5 
			 Cumbria 33.5 29.7 26.3 29.5 
			 Derbyshire 34.0 32.3 30.9 32.1 
			 Devon and Cornwall 25.3 23.6 23.9 22.7 
			 Dorset 24.7 23.6 27.1 29.9 
			 Durham 23.3 23.8 24.7 27.3 
			 Dyfed Powys 26.3 24.1 26.7 29.5 
			 Essex 39.1 42.2 48.8 54.9 
			 Gloucestershire 26.9 28.8 32.9 37.6 
			 Gwent 36.9 37.4 29.2 27.5 
			 Hampshire 28.7 29.9 32.0 33.6 
			 Hertfordshire 39.6 40.8 47.6 40.2 
			 Humberside 25.6 24.6 24.0 27.0 
			 Kent 31.6 30.4 34.2 35.5 
			 Lancashire 24.0 25.3 27.9 31.1 
			 Leicestershire 25.1 24.2 25.6 26.4 
			 Lincolnshire 31.9 28.0 27.1 26.8 
			 London 40.7 50.7 47.6 48.2 
			 Greater Manchester 35.6 38.8 33.8 37.0 
			 Merseyside 34.5 36.6 38.3 33.7 
			 Norfolk 28.7 28.1 31.3 30.3 
			 North Wales 26.6 27.5 31.4 34.7 
			 North Yorkshire 22.4 25.0 26.3 28.2 
			 Northamptonshire 33.1 33.7 26.3 29.5 
			 Northumbria 21.4 21.0 23.1 26.1 
			 Nottinghamshire 33.4 33.2 30.1 33.3 
			 South Wales 31.6 29.7 30.1 30.5 
			 South Yorkshire 29.6 28.2 29.3 29.6 
			 Staffordshire 24.6 24.1 24.9 26.2 
			 Suffolk 20.3 21.8 23.7 23.3 
			 Surrey 25.3 25.7 28.2 24.7 
			 Sussex 37.3 30.7 33.2 40.5 
			 Teesside 39.8 32.7 33.9 32.5 
			 Thames Valley 30.6 32.6 35.3 35.1 
			 Warwickshire 27.8 23.8 29.2 33.1 
			 West Mercia 23.8 25.9 25.2 27.3 
			 West Midlands 41.0 36.7 37.0 40.4 
			 West Yorkshire 31.4 30.6 29.4 30.1 
			 Wiltshire 34.1 27.7 28.3 33.2 
			 National Average 31.8 32.5 32.6 34.1 
			  Note: Figures provided are full-time equivalent and include senior probation officers, probation officers, senior practitioners and practice development assessors

National Security Appeals Panel

Eleanor Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many times the National Security Appeals Panel has sat in each year since 2004.

Bridget Prentice: The number of appeals to the National Security Appeals Panel which reached a conclusion in each year since 2004 is shown in the following table. Withdrawn appeals were withdrawn prior to the Tribunal hearing.
	
		
			  Number of national security appeals panel appeals cleared 
			   Hearings  Withdrawals 
			 2004-05 0 0 
			 2005-06 2 0 
			 2006-07 0 2 
			 2007-08 0 0 
			 2008-09 0 2 
			 2009 (From 1 April to 30 June) 1 1

Office of the Public Guardian

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the  (a) resource budget,  (b) capital budget,  (c) fee income and  (d) amount of public funding is for the Office of the Public Guardian in (i) 2008-09, (ii) 2009-10 and (iii) 2010-11.

Bridget Prentice: Information about Office of the Public Guardian (OPG)(1) funding is contained in the following table. Prior to April 2009 the OPG provided the administration for the Court of Protection, whereas the administration is now provided by HM Courts Service.
	
		
			  £000 
			   2008-09 Spring supplementary estimate( 1)  2009-10 Main estimat e( 1)  2010-11 Indicative( 2) 
			 Resource DEL 1,100 (2,310) (2,310) 
			 Resource Budget 21,600 23,670 23,670 
			 Capital Budget 500 1,500 419 
			 Fee Income (20,500) (25,980) (25,980) 
			 Public Funding Resource(3) 2,000 2,600 3,000 
			 Public Funding Capital 0 0 0 
			 (1) These figures also include the costs of the Court of Protection for each year. The financial planning process to incorporate the budgetary transfers which are predicated on the organisational changes for the Court of protection is not complete; the figures therefore reflect the OPG and CP as one entity. (2) These figures have been taken from the Ministry of Justice's Departmental Annual Report 2008-09 and also include Court of Protection. (3) The public resource funding is due to remissions and exemptions.

Parole

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) male and  (b) female prisoners in each prison who were eligible for parole had been sitting (i) under a month, (ii) between one and three months, (iii) between three and six months and (iv) over six months for a parole hearing on the latest date for which figures are available.

Bridget Prentice: As at 30 June 2009, the number of indeterminate sentenced prisoners referred to the Parole Board where the target for a parole hearing has passed are as follows:
	(i) 223 under a month;
	(ii) 451 between one and three months;
	(iii) 213 between three and six months; and
	(iv) 192 over six months.
	A further 95 cases have had hearing dates cancelled or deferred and will need new hearing dates arranged.
	In relation to determinate sentence prisoners, the Parole Board has no backlog of cases awaiting parole consideration.
	To provide figures broken down by gender and prison could be done only at a disproportionate cost.

Political Parties and Elections Bill

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what timetable he anticipates for the commencement of each substantive element of the Political Parties and Elections Bill following Royal Ascent.

Jack Straw: The commencement of the provisions of the Political Parties and Elections Bill, which I introduced to this House on 17 July 2008, will depend on its progress through its final stages in Parliament and the date upon which it receives Royal Assent.
	Provisions which are proposed to commence automatically on Royal Assent are listed under clause 41(3). The remaining provisions shall be commenced by order at a time to be determined by me.
	[1] restricting pre-candidacy election expenses will not be commenced until restrictions on the use of the communications allowance have been agreed by the House: "the two matters were linked-one depends on the other" (9 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1221-23). As my hon. Friend, the Deputy Leader of the House (Barbara Keeley), made clear in a written answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham (Mr. Maude) on 20 July 2009,  Official Report, column 800W, the Leader of the House hopes to bring forward the necessary amendments shortly after the summer adjournment.

Prisoner Escapes: Sudbury Prison

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners have absconded from Sudbury Prison in the last 18 months.

Maria Eagle: Absconds occur where a prisoner absents himself from prison custody without lawful authority and without overcoming physical security barriers or restraints, conditions typically found in open prisons. HMP Sudbury is an adult male, open prison. 50 prisoners absconded from Sudbury prison in the period 1 October 2007 to 31 March 2009. This compares with 106 absconds for the 18-month period prior to that (1 April 2006 to 30 September 2007). The rate of absconding across England and Wales continues to fall and the number of absconds are presently at their lowest level since centralised reporting of this type of incident began in 1995.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.
	Figures on absconds and a range of other prison performance statistics are available at:
	www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/abouttheservice/prisonperformance/performancestatistics/

Prisoner Release

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what powers he has to reject the recommendation of the Parole Board on the release of a prisoner; and what criteria he uses in deciding whether to reject such a recommendation;
	(2)  what recommendation the Parole Board made to him in respect of the release of Ronald Biggs following its recent deliberations;
	(3)  what advice he received from officials in his Department in respect of the release of Ronald Biggs following the recent recommendation of the Parole Board;
	(4)  on how many occasions since 1 January 2001 the relevant Minister has not agreed with the recommendation of the Parole Board to release an individual prisoner;
	(5)  on how many occasions the Parole Board recommended the release of a prisoner in  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009;
	(6)  on how many occasions during  (a) 2007,  (b) 2008 and  (c) 2009 officials of his Department endorsed Parole Board decisions to release individual prisoners.

Jack Straw: Section 35(1) of the Criminal Justice Act 1991, in conjunction with the Parole Board (Transfer of Functions) Order 1998, provides for the Secretary of State to determine whether prisoners serving a determinate sentence of 15 years or more, and who are subject to the release provisions of that Act, should be released on parole, subject to a positive recommendation for early release from the Parole Board. The factors considered when deciding whether or not to accept a recommendation from the Board are set out in directions given by the Secretary of State to the Board. The primary factor is the risk to the public of a further offence being committed at a time when the prisoner would otherwise be in prison and whether any such risk is acceptable.
	On 15 June 2009 the Parole Board recommended that Ronald Biggs should be released on parole licence.
	To release the advice given to Ministers by officials about the release of Mr. Biggs would be likely to prejudice the provision of full and frank advice to Ministers in future and I am therefore not making this advice public.
	The number of prisoners' cases where a recommendation for early release from the Parole Board was turned down in the period 2004-09 is given in the following table. All the cases were those of prisoners serving determinate sentences of 15 years or more and subject to the release provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 1991. Figures for years prior to those provided are not held centrally and would require a manual trawl of available data. To do so would incur a disproportionate cost.
	
		
			   Number of prisoners 
			 2004 1 
			 2005 3 
			 2006 3 
			 2007 3 
			 2008 0 
			 2009 (as of 8 July 2009) 1 
		
	
	The number of cases where the Parole Board made a recommendation for release in the period 2007-09 is given in the following table. All the cases were those of prisoners serving determinate sentences of 15 years or more and subject to the release provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 1991.
	
		
			   Number of prisoners 
			 2007 46 
			 2008 31 
			 2009 (as of 9 July 2009) 12 
		
	
	These figures have been drawn from internal records and may be subject to inaccuracies due to data inputting errors.
	The number of cases where officials, on behalf of the Secretary of State and without formally seeking ministerial approval, endorsed Parole Board recommendations for the release of prisoners on parole for the period 2007-09 is given in the following table. All the cases were those of prisoners serving determinate sentences of 15 years or more and subject to the release provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 1991.
	
		
			   Number of prisoners 
			 2007 40 
			 2008 31 
			 2009 (as of 9 July 09) 11 
		
	
	These figures have been drawn from internal records possibly subject to data inputting errors.

Prisoners: Human Rights

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how much the Government has paid to prisoners as a consequence of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights on cases relating to parole and release of prisoners in the last five years; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many occasions prisoners have been released from prison on a date changed as a result of a European Court of Human Rights judgment in the last five years.

Jack Straw: Compensation paid to prisoners is recorded centrally against the main type of allegation recorded in the claim for compensation. Whether the claim followed as a consequence of a European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) ruling and whether a prisoner was released on a date changed as a consequence of the ruling is not recorded centrally. To establish how many prisoners have been paid compensation over the last five years as a consequence of judgments handed down by the ECtHR would involve interrogating over 3,000 individual litigation files.

Prisoners: Pregnant Women

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many pregnant women there were in prisons in England and Wales in each of the last five years.

Maria Eagle: As a result of configuration problems experienced with the database used to record information on the number of pregnant women that were in prisons in England and Wales, this information can not be provided at present.
	A review of the systems used to record these data is being undertaken to ensure effective processes for data collection and retention are in place. Every effort will be made to consolidate historical data and I will write to the hon. Member when this work is complete to provide all the information that is available in response to her question.

Prisoners: Rehabilitation

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many prisoners serving indeterminate sentences for public protection have been offered places on courses promoting their rehabilitation in the most recent period for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many prisoners serving indeterminate sentences for public protection have completed courses promoting their rehabilitation in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(3)  when he expects the National Offender Management Service review of indeterminate sentences for public protection intervention needs to be complete.

Jack Straw: Information on how many prisoners have been offered places on courses promoting their rehabilitation is not centrally recorded, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost by checking the files of the prisoners concerned.
	At the end of June 2009, 3,189 prisoners serving indeterminate sentences for public protection (IPPS) had completed at least one accredited offending behaviour or drug treatment programme in custody. In addition, prisoners may have completed other activities such as training, education, work, non-accredited courses, specialist support or resettlement work which also have a significant part to play in promoting rehabilitation. This information is not centrally recorded.
	The programme of work to review the intervention needs of IPPS should be completed in the next 18 months. Much work has already been completed but it now needs to be integrated into a broader programme of work covering the intervention needs of all offenders, the range of programmes, and the resources to deliver them.

Prisoners: Suicide

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners serving indeterminate sentences for public protection have committed suicide since such sentences were introduced.

Maria Eagle: Any death in prison custody is a tragic event. The Government, Ministry of Justice and the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) is committed to learning from such events and reducing the number of self-inflicted deaths in prison custody. NOMS has a broad, integrated and evidence-based prisoner suicide prevention and self-harm management strategy that seeks to reduce the distress of all those in prison. This encompasses a wide spectrum of prison and Department of Health work around such issues as mental health, substance misuse and resettlement. Any prisoner identified as at risk of suicide or self-harm is cared for using the Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) procedures. ACCT is the prisoner-centred flexible care-planning system introduced across the prisons estate in partnership with the Department of Health during 2005-07.
	Indeterminate sentences for public protection (IPP) were introduced in 2005. Prisoners serving such sentences account for 6 per cent. of all prisoners. There have been a total of 12 self-inflicted deaths involving prisoners with IPP status. These numbers are detailed in the following table.
	
		
			   Self-inflicted deaths involving prisoners on indeterminate sentences for public protection sentences 
			 2005 0 
			 2006 2 
			 2007 4 
			 2008 4 
			 2009(1) 2 
			 (1) 2009 figures cover January to June only.

Prisons: Smuggling

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) prison officers,  (b) staff in governor grades and  (c) other staff employed in prisons and young offender institutions have been convicted of offences involving the taking of (i) drugs and (ii) mobile telephones into such establishments in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Maria Eagle: All Prison Service staff are expected to meet high standards of professional and personal conduct. Allegations of staff misconduct, which are potentially criminal in nature, are referred to the police for investigation and, where appropriate, prosecution.
	In order to provide the detailed information requested, we would need to contact all public sector Prison Service establishments, ask them to check their local records for the period required and ask them to submit this information to headquarters so that the central records can be updated. This would incur disproportionate cost.

Public Opinion: Ministry of Justice

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was spent by his Department on  (a) focus groups and  (b) opinion polling in 2008-09.

Jack Straw: The information requested on expenditure is not held centrally, however a search of local records has identified a number of projects undertaken in the 2008-09 financial year. Based on these returns the Ministry of Justice Department (not including NDPBs) spent around £647,000 including VAT on focus groups, and £247,000 including VAT on opinion polls.
	 Note:
	The figures given are based on local returns and do not separately identify the elements of projects that were specifically focus groups or opinion polls This figure does not include wider market and opinion research that extends beyond opinion polling and focus groups.

Public Service: Misconduct

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 15 December 2008,  Official Report, column 478W, on misconduct in public office, when he plans to place in the Library a copy of his letter.

Jack Straw: I have written to the hon. Member on 19 July 2009 and have placed a copy in the Library of the House. I apologise for the delay.

Reoffenders: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the re-offending rate of people in each age group in the Essex probation area was in each of the last five years.

Maria Eagle: The local re-offending figures are produced by aggregating the data of four snapshots of the probation caseload at the end of each quarter. Therefore the number of offenders quoted in the following table is approximately four times the number of offenders on the caseload at any one time.
	The most recent re-offending rates for Essex are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Local re-offending rates for Essex, 1 January-31 December 2008 
			   Number of offenders  Actual re-offending rate (percentage) 
			 Essex probation area 20,217 8.17 
		
	
	The local re-offending rate is not broken down by age band.
	Local adult re-offending rates by probation area or local authority are not available for periods prior to 1 October 2007 to 30 September 2008.
	Further details on local adult re-offending are available at:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/docs/local-adult-reoffending-2008-ii.pdf

Sexual Offences

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of people convicted of (a) rape and (b) sexual assault were aged (i) under 16, (ii) 16 to 18, (iii) 19 to 65 and (iv) over 65 years in each year since 1997.

Claire Ward: The number of persons found guilty at all courts for rape and sexual assault, in England and Wales, by age group, from 1997 to 2007 (latest available) is shown in the following tables.
	The figures given in the tables relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offence for which they were dealt with. For example, when a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the offence selected is the one for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
	Court proceedings data for 2008 will be available in the autumn of 2009.
	
		
			  Number of persons found guilty at all courts for offences of rape( 1)  and sexual assault in England and Wales, by age group, 1997 to 2007( 2,3,4,5) 
			   1997  1998  1999  2000( 6)  2001  2002 
			   Found guilty  % of total found guilty  Found guilty  % of total found guilty  Found guilty  % of total found guilty  Found guilty  % of total found guilty  Found guilty  % of total found guilty  Found guilty  % of total found guilty 
			  Rape 
			 Age 10-15 25 4 16 2 26 4 16 3 19 3 12 2 
			 Age 16-18 52 8 28 4 51 8 41 7 39 7 35 5 
			 Age 19-65 528 86 600 89 559 86 515 87 498 88 574 89 
			 Age 66 and over 10 2 29 4 16 2 21 4 11 2 23 4 
			 Total all ages 615 100 673 100 652 100 593 100 567 100 644 100 
			  
			  Sexual assault 
			 Age 10-15 196 7 207 7 208 7 185 7 218 9 237 9 
			 Age 16-18 235 8 243 8 232 8 229 9 197 8 232 9 
			 Age 19-65 2,376 80 2,278 79 2,259 79 2,023 78 1,946 77 1,988 77 
			 Age 66 and over 156 5 166 6 169 6 147 6 156 6 133 5 
			 Total all ages 2,963 100 2,894 100 2,868 100 2,584 100 2,517 100 2,590 100 
		
	
	
		
			   2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			   Found guilty  % of total found guilty  Found guilty  % of total found guilty  Found guilty  % of total found guilty  Found guilty  % of total found guilty  Found guilty  % of total found guilty 
			  Rape   
			 Age 10-15 16 2 23 3 32 4 39 5 38 4 
			 Age 16-18 33 5 32 4 74 9 70 8 61 7 
			 Age 19-65 594 89 658 89 660 83 728 84 731 84 
			 Age 66 and over 27 4 29 4 29 4 25 3 42 5 
			 Total all ages 670 100 742 100 795 100 862 100 872 100 
			
			  Sexual assault   
			 Age 10-15 164 7 246 9 170 8 138 7 147 7 
			 Age 16-18 205 8 216 8 180 8 150 7 151 7 
			 Age 19-65 1,955 79 1,996 77 1,747 78 1,613 79 1,668 79 
			 Age 66 and over 143 6 150 6 141 6 151 7 137 7 
			 Total all ages 2,467 100 2,608 100 2,238 100 2,052 100 2,103 100 
			 (1) Includes attempted rape. (2) Data are on the principal offence basis. (3) Data includes the following statutes and corresponding offence descriptions: Sexual Offences Act 1956 s.14 Indecent assault on a male. Indecent assault on a female. (4) The Sexual Offences Act 2003 came into force on 1st May 2004 and repealed previous Sexual Offences Acts: Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.1 Rape of a female. Rape of a male Attempted rape of a female. Attempted rape of a male. Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.2 Assault on a male by penetration Assault on a female by penetration Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.3 Sexual assault on a male. Sexual assault on a female Sexual Offences Act 2003 S. 5 Rape of a female child under 13 by a male Rape of a male child under 13 by a male Attempted rape of a female child under 13 by a male Attempted rape of a male child under 13 by a male Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.6 Assault of a male child under 13 by penetration Assault of a female child under 13 by penetration Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.7 Sexual assault of a female child under 13 Sexual assault of a male child under 13 5 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (6) Staffordshire Police Force were only able to submit sample data for persons proceeded against and convicted at magistrates' courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust enough at a detailed level and have been excluded from the table.  Source:  Office for Criminal Justice Reform - Evidence and Analysis Unit (OCJR-E&A)

Social Security Benefits: Disqualification

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what progress has been made in the pilot benefit sanction scheme operated by magistrates' courts; what assessment has been made of the effect of the scheme on levels of crime in the pilot areas; and whether he plans to extend that scheme to other areas.

Jim Knight: I have been asked to reply.
	A written statement was made on 27 February 2009, announcing the intention to end the community sentence sanction pilots, subject to parliamentary approval. Initial evaluation research showed a modest 1.8 per cent. improvement in compliance by sanctioned offenders, directly attributable to the impact of the policy.
	Taking into account the overall cost-effectiveness of running the pilot scheme and other measures introduced to strengthen compliance and enforcement, it was decided that the pilots should end and should not be rolled out nationally. The appropriate legislation to end the pilots is being taken forward as part of the Welfare Reform Bill.

Victim Support Schemes

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much has been distributed from the Victims Fund on 2008-09; and which groups received money from the fund for the provision of services to victims of hate crime or homicide in that year.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 20 July 2009
	I have been asked to reply.
	The Government distributed a total of £277,618.08 from the Victims Fund between 13 groups for the provision of services to victims of hate crime or homicide for the period 2008-09. £1.25 million was allocated to victims of sexual violence.
	£109,976 was distributed for the provision of services to victims of homicide to five groups and they were as follows:
	Support After Murder and Manslaughter (Merseyside)-awarded £20,450
	National Victims Association-awarded £30,985
	Child Bereavement Charity-awarded £20,887
	Victims of Crime Trust-awarded £17,700
	Victim Support (Bedfordshire)-awarded £19,954.08
	£167,642 was distributed for the provision of services to victims of hate crime to eight groups and they were as follows:
	Voice UK-awarded £34,900
	Greenwich Action Committee Against Racist Attacks-awarded £19,920
	Kirklees Metropolitan Council-awarded £15,000
	Gender Identity Research and Education Society-awarded £4,750
	North Herts People First-£53,180
	Victim Support Teesside-£4,130
	Greater Manchester Police, Bury Division-£15,762
	West Yorkshire Police-£20,000

Young Offenders

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many under 18 year olds have been  (a) prosecuted and  (b) convicted for (i) sexual offences, (ii) robbery, (iii) criminal damage, (iv) drug offences and (v) violent offences in each year since 1999.

Jack Straw: The number of persons aged 10 to 17 who were proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts for the requested offence groups in England and Wales, for the years 1999 to 2007 (latest available) can be viewed in the following table.
	The Sexual Offences Act 2003 significantly modernised and strengthened the laws on sexual offences in England and Wales to provide extra protection to children from sexual exploitation. This makes direct comparisons with previous legislation very difficult. Many new offences created by the Act will not have a direct equivalent under the old legislation.
	These data are on the principal offence basis. The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offence for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the offence selected is the one for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
	Court proceedings data for 2008 will be available in the autumn of 2009.
	
		
			  Number of persons aged 10 to 17 who were proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts for selected indictable offences( 1) , England and Wales 1999 to 2007( 2, 3) 
			   Proceeded against  Found guilty 
			   Sexual Offences( 4,)( )( 5)  Robbery( 6)  Criminal Damage( 7)  Drug Offences( 8)  Violence against the Person( 9)  Sexual Offences( 4, 5)  Robbery( 6)  Criminal Damage( 7)  Drug Offences( 8)  Violence against the Person( 9) 
			 1999 916 4,107 4,235 3,823 10,898 489 2,044 2,691 3,113 5,982 
			 2000(10) 929 5,309 4,104 4,390 11,777 463 2,213 2,527 3,696 6,253 
			 2001 1,120 6,688 4,841 5,312 13,154 511 2,792 2,897 4,341 6,910 
			 2002 1,208 6,618 4,795 5,954 12,392 557 2,807 2,910 4,957 6,871 
			 2003 1,073 5,546 4,770 6,003 11,999 448 2,641 2,948 5,145 6,579 
			 2004 1,237 5,666 4,632 5,125 11,314 587 2,964 3,233 4,478 6,906 
			 2005 1,146 5,809 4,434 5,214 11,168 554 3,079 3,268 4,628 7,428 
			 2006 987 6,418 4,742 4,977 11,052 492 3,701 3,669 4,455 7,520 
			 2007 1,009 6,808 4,623 5,855 10,738 543 4,115 3,627 5,264 7,679 
			 (1 )Includes Indictable and triable-either way offences, 'Indictable only' are the most serious breaches of the criminal law and must be dealt with at the Crown court. Triable-either-way offences may be tried at either the Crown court or at magistrates courts. The offence groups do not include summary offences. (2 )The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts, and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4 )Sexual Offences includes data for the Sexual Offences Act 2003, which came into force on 1 May 2004. (5) Sexual Offences offence type includes the following offence classes: Buggery Sexual Assault on a Male Indecency between Males Rape of a Female Rape of a Male Sexual Assault on a Female Sexual Activity with child under 13 Sexual Activity with child under 16 Familial Sexual Offences (Incest) Exploitation of Prostitution Abduction 
			 Bigamy Soliciting of women by Men Sexual activity etc. with a person with a mental disorder Abuse of children through prostitution and pornography Trafficking for sexual exploitation Abuse of trust-sexual offences Gross Indecency with Children Miscellaneous sexual offences (6) Robbery offence type includes the following offence class: Robbery (7) Criminal Damage offence type includes the following offence classes: Arson Criminal Damage Endangering Life Other Criminal Damage Threat etc., to commit Criminal Damage  (8) Drug offences includes the following offence classes: Unlawful importation-Class A Unlawful importation-Class B Unlawful importation-Class C Unlawful importation-Class unspecified Unlawful exportation-Class A Unlawful exportation-Class B Unlawful exportation-Class C Unlawful exportation-Class Unspecified Production, supply and possession with intent to supply a controlled drug-Class A Production-Class B Production-Class C Production-Class unspecified Possession of a controlled drug-Class A Possession-Class B Possession-Class C Possession-Class unspecified Other drug offences (9) Violence against the person offence type includes the following offence classes: Murder Attempted Murder Threat or Conspiracy to Murder Manslaughter Infanticide Child Destruction Causing Death by Dangerous Driving Manslaughter Due to Diminished Responsibility Causing Death by Careless Driving when under the influence of Drink or Drugs Causing Death of a child or vulnerable person Wounding or other act Endangering Life Endangering Railway Passenger Endangering Life at Sea Malicious Wounding etc. Cruelty to or Neglect of Children Abandoning Child aged under Two Years Child Abduction Procuring Illegal Abortion Concealment of Birth Causing Death by Aggravated Vehicle Taking (10) Staffordshire police force were only able to submit sample data for persons proceeded against and convicted in the magistrates courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust enough at a detailed level and have been excluded from the table.  Source: OCJR-E and A: Office for Criminal Justice Reform-Evidence and Analysis Unit, Ministry of Justice

Young Offenders

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the effect of the costs of  (a) national and regional management and administration,  (b) premises,  (c) insurance,  (d) staff pensions,  (e) depreciation,  (f) land,  (g) capital and  (h) other central expenditure on his estimate of the average annual cost of providing a custodial place for a young offender.

Maria Eagle: The overall average resource cost per place of a young offender institution in 2007-08 (the latest year for which figures are available) was:
	Direct net expenditure met locally at establishments: £32,799
	Other net expenditure met centrally by the Prison Service: 14,960
	(HMPS)and the National Offender Management Service (NOMS)
	Total overall average resource cost per place: £47,759
	The direct resource expenditure met locally at each establishment is as reported in the Annual Report and Accounts of HMPS 2007-08. Resource expenditure met centrally by HMPS and NOMS includes for example: national and regional management and administration, major maintenance, depreciation and cost of capital of land and buildings, and prisoner escort service. This involves some estimation. Income from the Youth Justice Board (YJB) in respect of services recharged to the YJB is excluded in order to show the overall cost to the Ministry of Justice, as is any spend by other Government Departments (e.g. for health and education). Capital expenditure is not included.

Youth Custody

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 6 July 2009,  Official Report, column 622W, on youth custody, if he will issue guidance on the time of day by which juvenile offenders should be delivered to places of detention.

Vernon Coaker: I have been asked to reply.
	The Youth Justice Board is working with the National Offender Management Service, which manages the contracts for escorts to young offender institutions, on measures to ensure that young people under 18 who are sent to young offender institutions arrive at a reasonable hour.
	Escort arrangements for young people sent to secure training centres and secure children's homes are managed by the Youth Justice Board. At the conclusion of court business, service providers are contractually required to take the young person direct to the establishment, which minimises the risk of a late arrival.

Zuzanna Zommer

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  if he will publish a summary of the serious case reviews relating to the murder of Zuzanna Zommer in October 2007;
	(2)  if he will hold an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of Zuzanna Zommer in October 2007.

Jack Straw: There have been two reviews relating to the murder of Zuzanna Zommer by Michael Clark, who was subject to the sex offender notification requirements but not subject to statutory probation supervision at the time of the murder.
	The first was a non-statutory review commissioned by the strategic management board (SMB) for West Yorkshire multi-agency public protection arrangements (MAPPA). No summary has been prepared for publication, but the SMB is prepared and has offered to share the findings of the review with the family of Zuzanna Zommer.
	In December 2008, the National Offender Management Service and the association of chief police officers introduced a requirement for MAPPA serious case reviews to be completed where an offender managed at level 2 or 3 of MAPPA is charged with murder, rape, manslaughter, attempted murder or attempted rape. Where MAPPA serious case reviews are undertaken, it is a requirement of the process that SMBs produce an overview report, summarising the review, to be shared with the victim or the victim's family.
	The second review has been commissioned by Leeds Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB) and is yet to report. In line with usual practice with such statutory reviews, an executive summary of this review will be published once completed.
	We will consider, in the light of the MAPPA serious case review and the anticipated report from the LSCB, what further action may be necessary.

CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES

Academies

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the effect of the academies programme on the provision of basic skills.

Vernon Coaker: The PricewaterhouseCoopers Academies evaluation looked at pupil progress in English and maths and science at KS3. They found that in English:
	"...the average improvement for all Academies over the period 2002-2007 in the percentage of pupils achieving Level 5 or above at KS3 is 5.2% per year. This is substantially higher than the average annual change for the average of the three Comparison Groups and for England as a whole over the same period."
	In Maths they reported that
	"the average annual improvement per Academy for the period (3.7%) is well above that for England as a whole, though only slightly above that for the three Comparison Groups."
	In science the report found that
	"the average improvement per Academy (5.1%) is also much higher than the average improvements for the Comparison Groups and for England as a whole."
	Following the 2008 GCSE results, the 36 academies which have been open long enough to have results in both 2007 and 2008 had an increase of 4.3 percentage points in the percentage of pupils at the end of key stage 4 gaining five or more A*-C grades at GCSE and equivalent including English and Maths (up to 29.5 per cent.) compared to 2.5 percentage points nationally.

Arts: Teachers

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many trained  (a) music,  (b) drama and  (c) art teachers have been employed in maintained schools in each of the last five years.

Vernon Coaker: The number of teachers of music, drama and art in maintained secondary schools in England is collected as part of the Secondary School Curriculum and Staffing Survey. This is an occasional survey that does not provide a full time series. The survey has only been conducted in 2007 in the most recent five years.
	The following table gives data from the 2007 survey, the most recent survey available, for full-time equivalent teachers. It shows the number of teachers teaching at least one period a week of the subject, and the proportions with a post A-level qualification relevant to the subject.
	
		
			  Number of music, drama and art teachers, and the proportions with a post A-level qualification in the subject in maintained secondary schools in England; 2007 
			   Number of teachers (FTE)( 1)  Proportion with a relevant post A-level qualification (percentage) 
			 Music 6,500 87 
			 Drama 9,000 56 
			 Art and design 10,100 78 
			 (1) Teachers are counted once under each subject they teach. A teacher is included in the total for Music if they teach at least one period per timetable rotation of Music for example.  Source:  Secondary School Curriculum and Staffing Survey, 2007.

Building Schools for the Future Programme

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent progress his Department has made on its objective of bringing secondary school buildings up to 21st century standards; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: In the three years to 2010-11, we are investing £21.9 billion in our schools estate: a record amount and seven times the rate in 1997. This includes £9.3 billion for Building Schools for the Future, our strategic programme to provide world-class teaching and learning environments for all secondary school pupils, teachers and communities in England. 85 local authorities and about a third of all secondary schools are now engaged in the BSF programme. This includes the six new projects which were announced on 15 July to enter the programme this month. They will be followed by six more starts in the next quarter and six more in the quarter after that.
	Almost 90 schools have now benefited from BSF investment across England. We have also opened 133 academies, around half of which have brand new facilities, and we are well on our way to our target of 400 academies. In addition, schools and local authorities can invest their own funding to improve schools; secondary schools across the country share over £350 million of devolved formula capital grant in 2009-10. We are currently collecting information on the impact of our investment across the school estate and will publish our findings in due course.

Building Schools for the Future Programme

Angela Watkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether he plans to include sixth form colleges in the Building Schools for the Future programme.

Vernon Coaker: Pursuant to the answer of 21 April 2009,  Official Report, column 529W, I restate that we have made our intention clear to bring Sixth Form Colleges within the scope of the Building Schools for the Future programme. That remains our position. We will make the details clear as soon as we are able.

Building Schools for the Future Programme: Birmingham

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what progress has been made on Building Schools for the Future projects  (a) in progress and  (b) planned in Birmingham; and what projects have been completed in Birmingham.

Vernon Coaker: Birmingham is making good progress in Building Schools for the Future (BSF). It has a large programme with around 80 schools to deliver in total.
	With regards to projects in progress-the five sample schools in Birmingham's Wave 2 BSF project (which consists of 11 schools and eight academies in total) are due to start construction on or before financial close has been reached. This is scheduled to take place before the end of August 2009. The first schools in this wave are scheduled to open at the start of 2011.
	A further 14 schools will be delivered through Birmingham's Wave 5 BSF project. This project is progressing well, with the local authority currently finalising its education strategy. The first schools in this wave are currently scheduled to start construction at the end of 2010 and open in 2012.
	Birmingham also has a number of follow-on projects which are not yet active in BSF. These projects will deliver the remaining schools in the local authority. No BSF projects have yet been completed in Birmingham.

Building Schools for the Future Programme: Finance

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his most recent estimate is of the funding to be allocated to the Building Schools for the Future programme for  (a) 2009-10 and  (b) 2010-11.

Vernon Coaker: Resources from comprehensive spending review 2007 provided £9.3 billion for the building schools for the future and academies programmes for the period 2008-09 to 2010-11. This was made up of £3.7 billion PFI credits, and £5.6 billion of capital grant. £1.1 billion of capital grant was spent in 2008-09, with the balance to be allocated over the remaining two years, the timing of which will depend on the achievement of project milestones.

Children in Care

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many children have been placed in care in the last five years; and what proportion were returned to their parents within two months.

Vernon Coaker: Information on the number of children that have been placed in care in the last five years and the proportion that returned with their parents within two months can be found in the following table.
	
		
			  Children started to be looked after and the proportion who ceased to be looked after within two months due to returning to parents or those with parental responsibility( 1,2,3) , 2004 to 2008, Coverage: England 
			  Years ending 31 March  Children that started to be looked after during the year  Percentage returned to their parents (or those with parental responsibility) within two months 
			 2004 25,000 21 
			 2005 24,900 21 
			 2006 24,600 20 
			 2007 24,000 19 
			 2008(4) 23,000 18 
			 (1) Only the first occasion on which a child started to be looked in the year has been counted. (2) Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short-term placements. (3) Reason episode ceased defined as "Returned home to live with parents, relatives, or other person with parental responsibility (not under a residence order or special guardianship order)". (4) Children who started to be looked after during the last two months of the year may subsequently return to their parents within two months but this information will not be available until the next data collection. Therefore the percentage could increase.  Source: SSDA903

Children in Care

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the average cost to the public purse of meeting the legal requirements associated with placing a child in care in the latest period for which figures are available.

Dawn Primarolo: Loughborough university has conducted research into the costs of providing children's services. This work calculated that the costs to children's services of obtaining a court order at 2006/07 prices were £2,765.
	The fees (in current prices) charged by the courts for obtaining a care order are as follows. There are three stages to these fees with costs varying depending on which stage is reached in proceedings.
	1. On an application for a care or supervision order under Section 31 of the Children Act 1989: £2,225
	2. Where an issues resolution hearing or pre-hearing review has been listed: £700
	3. Where a final hearing has been listed: £1,900.
	In response to the recommendation about court fees set out in Lord Laming's report 'The Protection of Children in England: A Progress Report', the Ministry of Justice has appointed Francis Plowden to conduct a review of court fees, and to establish whether or not the level of court fees act as a deterrent when local authorities decide whether or not to commence care proceedings. Francis Plowden is expected to present his findings to the Lord Chancellor and to the Secretary of State for Justice by mid September 2009.

Children in Care: Missing Persons

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many children went missing from care homes in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point in each year since 1997.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer my hon. Member to the reply given on 12 June,  Official Report, column 1068W, to the hon. Member for North-West Cambridgeshire (Mr. Vara). Information on the number of looked after children that went missing from care homes was not collected prior to 2001. This information cannot be provided below local authority level.

Children: Abuse

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will establish mechanisms to track the annual number of cases of  (a) violence,  (b) sexual abuse,  (c) neglect,  (d) maltreatment and  (e) exploitation of children, including, (i) within the family, (ii) in schools and (iii) in institutional or other care.

Dawn Primarolo: National data show 29,200 children were the subject of a child protection plan at 31 March 2008. A child has a child protection plan where there are concerns about their safety and welfare as set out in the statutory guidance "Working Together to Safeguard Children" (2006). 45 per cent. of these plans were due to neglect, 25 per cent. due to emotional abuse, 15 per cent. due to physical abuse, 7 per cent. due to sexual abuse and 8 per cent. due to multiple abuses.

Children: Disadvantaged

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his most recent estimate is of the number of households in poverty with children of school age who do not receive free school meals.

Dawn Primarolo: It is estimated that on a Before Housing Costs basis, in 2007/08 that 0.9 million households in the United Kingdom in poverty with children did not receive free school meals.
	 Notes:
	1. The FRS undercounts the total number of children receiving free school meals when compared to administrative data.
	2. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income, sourced from the Family Resources Survey.
	3. The estimates exclude households with only children aged under four years who would not be at school.
	4. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response.
	5. The reference period for Households Below Average Income figures are single financial years.
	6. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'Households Below Average Income' series, which uses net disposable household income, adjusted (or "equivalised") for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
	7. Incomes have been equivalised using OECD equalisation factors.
	8. Numbers of households have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 people.
	 Source:
	Family Resources Survey (FRS) 2007-08.

Children: Exercise

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much funding the Government has allocated to encourage children in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point to adopt more active lifestyles in each year since 1992.

Diana Johnson: The Government do not allocate discrete funding for this purpose on an area basis and it is not possible to provide an answer in the format requested.
	Encouraging all children and young people to adopt a more active lifestyle is a priority for this Government. Our strategic approach to this is set out in 'Be Active, Be Healthy', 'Healthy lives, brighter futures: the strategy for children and young people's Health' and 'Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives: a Cross-Government Strategy for England'.
	These strategies support the Chief Medical Officer's recommendation that children and young people should achieve a total of at least 60 minutes of at least moderate intensity physical activity each day, and at least twice a week this should include activities to improve bone health, muscle strength and flexibility.
	Individuals can achieve this level of activity through a variety of routes, including everyday activity, such as walking or cycling, active recreation, such as play, dance, or swimming, and through sport, both for competition and for individual exercise. The role of parents and carers in influencing children's activity levels is crucial, so the Government support initiatives to improve family based activity as well as a range of initiatives in children's settings, all of which are available to children and young people in Castle Point and Essex.
	Initiatives which focus on supporting children and their families to be physically active include:
	the Change4Life social marketing campaign, backed by £75 million of funding over three years to 2011, promotes an 'eat well, move more, live longer' message to families with children aged five to 11. Since its launch in January 2009, over 255,000 families have contacted Change4Life and received tailored materials on physical activity and healthy eating as a result;
	Sure Start Children's Centres, which should engage parents to promote a whole-family approach to eating well and keeping active, and organise and promote physical activities;
	the universal, NHS-delivered Healthy Child Programme for ages 0 to five supports parents in keeping their children healthy, and focuses on developing and maintaining healthy nutritional and lifestyle habits from a very early age;
	the Play Strategy, through which 3,500 new or refurbished play areas and 30 staffed adventure playgrounds are being delivered, aimed at eight to 13-year-olds, with a focus on disadvantaged areas. Details of funding for play schemes in Essex and Castle Point were given in answer to a previous question (Commons written question 282065);
	nearly 60 per cent. of local authorities have promised to provide free swimming for the under 16s and have opted-in to the Free Swimming Programme which the Government are supporting with £140 million over the period 2008-09 to 2010-11.
	Initiatives which are delivered through early years settings, schools and colleges include:
	the PE and School Sport for Young People strategy, through which 90 per cent. of pupils aged five to 16 now participate in at least two hours a week of high quality PE and school sport. The strategy also aims to ensure that all five to 19-year-olds have the opportunity for an additional three hours of sport a week outside the school day;
	the National Healthy Schools Programme: almost every school in the country has achieved, or is working towards, Healthy School status, which sets national standards for health and well-being around four core themes, including physical activity;
	schools offering access to Extended Services offer access to a wide range of services from 8 am to 6 pm, 48 weeks a year. The services include play, recreation and sports, and community access to facilities including adult learning and sports facilities;
	the £140 million joint DCSF and DFT Travel to School Initiative promotes walking and cycling: 17,392 (69 per cent.) of schools have active travel plans worth around £5,000 for a typical primary and around £10,000 for a typical secondary school;
	the Bikeability scheme aims to train 500,000 children to level 2 by 2010. Over 146,000 have already received training;
	since September 2008, sports co-ordinators have been appointed in 358 FE colleges, so almost all FE colleges have a co-ordinator in place.

Children: Protection

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how he plans to monitor the effectiveness of the provisions of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 in protecting vulnerable young people under the age of eight.

Dawn Primarolo: Once we phase in registration with the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA), there will be duties to check registration, and penalties for non-compliance. If, for example, a person permits staff to look after children under the age of eight in a crèche, it will be an offence if that person does not check that the staff are ISA-registered, or uses staff who are not ISA-registered, or knowingly uses staff who are barred from working with children. If anyone suspects that a person is committing such an offence, they should report it to the police.

Children: Protection

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps his Department is taking to improve child protection services in Castle Point.

Dawn Primarolo: Ofsted's 2008 Joint Area Review of Essex County Council's children's services judged services for safeguarding and looked after children to be inadequate. Essex County Council's 2008 Annual Performance Assessment included an inadequate judgment for the Every Child Matters outcome "staying safe ". The Government subsequently issued the Council with an Improvement Notice setting measurable targets that must be met within twelve months. External experts have been appointed to carry out a review of policies and procedures relating to child protection, children in need and looked after children and to undertake an audit of a broad sample of individual cases. Experts have also been appointed to undertake a review of the Local Safeguarding Children Board and to sit on the Government Office chaired Improvement Board to provide additional external scrutiny and challenge of progress in Essex.
	The Government have made clear their determination to make sure that child protection services in every area meet the needs of the vulnerable children they serve. That is why we asked Lord Laming to prepare an urgent report of progress across the country in implementing effective arrangements for safeguarding children. The Government have accepted all of Lord Laming's recommendations and published a detailed action plan on 6 May.

Children: Protection

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many people were on the barred list maintained under the Protection of Children Act 1999 in each of the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: The total number of people who are included on the barred list maintained under the Protection of Children Act 1999 in each of the last five years is as follows:
	
		
			  Calendar year  Number 
			 2004 1,110 
			 2005 1,311 
			 2006 1,580 
			 2007 2,195 
			 2008 2,409

Children: Protection

Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will bring forward proposals for automatic, independent and public reviews of any unexpected death or serious injury involving children in care or in custody.

Dawn Primarolo: There is already a process for investigating such deaths or serious injury. Where a death in custody engages the investigative requirement in Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights, the requirement would normally be met by means of an inquest or a combination of the inquest, criminal proceedings and serious case review. In addition, any death in custody will be the subject of an investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman. In the case of a death or serious injury of a child who is looked after by a local authority, and where abuse or neglect is known or suspected to be a factor, the Local Safeguarding Children Board will consider whether a Serious Case Review (SCR) should be undertaken, as they would following the death of any child in those circumstances. Executive Summaries of SCRs are made publicly available.

Children: Protection

Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent assessment he has made of progress in the implementation of the recommendations of the UN Secretary-General's Study on violence against children (A/61299) in ensuring that every child is protected from all forms of physical, sexual and mental violence.

Dawn Primarolo: The Government took note of the 'World Report on Violence against Children' and welcomes UN follow-up work, including the appointment, in May this year, of the Special Representative on violence against children. It has made clear its determination to do everything possible to make sure that all child protection services meet the needs of the vulnerable children they serve, and that child protection arrangements are effective everywhere. That is why the Government asked Lord Laming to prepare an urgent report of progress across the country in implementing effective arrangements for safeguarding children.
	Lord Laming's progress report confirmed that robust legislative, structural and policy foundations were now in place, but stressed the need for a renewed commitment to child protection at every level of government and across all local services.
	The Government have accepted all of Lord Laming's recommendations. Implementation will include a revision of the statutory guidance, 'Working Together to Safeguard Children', which sets out how organisations and individuals should work together to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
	The Government have also published new guidance on safeguarding children from specific forms of child abuse, including sexual exploitation and trafficking, and have recently consulted on guidance aimed at safeguarding children and young people who may be affected by gang activity.

Children's Centres: Hampshire

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many Sure Start children's centres were operating in  (a) Test Valley borough and  (b) the City of Southampton on the latest date for which figures are available; and how many such centres were originally planned to be operational on that date;
	(2)  how many Sure Start children's centres are planned for  (a) Test Valley borough and  (b) the City of Southampton; and when he expects all such centres to be operational;
	(3)  what estimate he has made of the number of children in each age group who are eligible for participation in the Sure Start children's centres programme in  (a) Test Valley borough and  (b) the City of Southampton; what the capacity of such children's centres was in those areas on the latest date for which figures are available; and how many such children were participating in that programme on that date.

Dawn Primarolo: Sure Start children's centres provide a universal service for all children under five and their parents or carers when they need it. Local authorities are responsible for planning and delivering sure start children's centres in their areas.
	Test Valley borough council currently has four Sure Start children's centres up and running, offering access to services to around 4,285 children under five and their families. A further two centres are planned for the Test Valley area by March 2010. The city of Southampton currently has 11 children's centres offering services to approximately 10,057 children under five with a further three planned by March 2010.
	There are 12,600 children under five(1) in Southampton and 71,700 in Hampshire. We are unable to provide figures for the Test Valley area as figures are set at local authority level. The Department does not collect information centrally on the number of children using children's centres services.
	(1) Source:
	ONS Survey 2007.

Citizenship: Education

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what contribution his Department has made to the development of citizenship education in mosque schools through the Islam Citizenship Education Project;
	(2)  what financial contribution  (a) the Schools Development Support Agency and  (b) community-based organisations have made to the development of citizenship education in mosque schools.

Diana Johnson: The Islam and Citizenship Education (ICE) Project is jointly funded by the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) and the Department for Communities and Local Government. We awarded a contract, worth £318,652, to the School Development Support Agency (SDSA) running from February 2008 to July 2009 to develop and pilot citizenship lessons for use in mosque schools. The SDSA, working in conjunction with Muslim communities, has successfully delivered this contract. We are currently in the process of tendering for the next stage of the ICE Project to roll out the lessons to mosque schools nationally. Apart from fulfilling their contractual obligations, the SDSA and community-based organisations have made no financial contribution towards the ICE Project.

Class Sizes

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many children were taught in classes of more than 30 pupils in  (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency,  (b) Dacorum,  (c) Hertfordshire and  (d) the South East in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: The available information is shown in the table.
	Dacorum is a local government district within the local authority of Hertfordshire. Data for Dacorum have been included for three years only as to provide for the full 12-year period would incur disproportionate cost.
	The tables cover classes in primary and secondary schools. There is a legal limit of 30 pupils for infant classes.
	
		
			  Maintained primary( 1)  and state-funded secondary( 1,2)  schools: number of pupils in classes( 3)  of more than 30 pupils-As at January each year in south-east Government office region, Hertfordshire, Dacorum, and Hemel Hempstead constituency 
			   South-east  Hertfordshire 
			   Number of pupils in classes of over 30  Number of pupils in all classes  Percentage of pupils in classes of over 30  Number of pupils in classes of over 30  Number of pupils in all classes  Percentage of pupils in classes of over 30 
			 1997 237,350 1,042,040 22.7 32,560 146,600 22.2 
			 1998 252,170 1,054,520 23.9 35,670 150,260 23.7 
			 1999 251,730 1,070,060 23.5 34,380 150,990 22.8 
			 2000 218,240 1,077,710 20.3 32,750 156,080 21.0 
			 2001 183,500 1,085,990 16.9 26,910 158,410 17.0 
			 2002 157,560 1,082,100 14.6 23,620 158,840 14.9 
			 2003 153,540 1,086,920 14.1 22,770 158,650 14.3 
			 2004 151,480 1,087,090 13.9 21,690 159,090 13.6 
			 2005 149,830 1,080,500 13.9 20,270 158,740 12.8 
			 2006 152,350 1,071.640 14.2 20,540 158,070 13.0 
			 2007 149,460 1,065,150 14.0 18,920 156,880 12.1 
			 2008 140,970 1,059,350 13.3 18,940 155,670 12.2 
		
	
	
		
			   Dacorum  Hemel Hempstead 
			   Number of pupils in classes of over 30  Number of pupils in all classes  Percentage of pupils in classes of over 30  Number of pupils in classes of over 30  Number of pupils in all classes  Percentage of pupils in classes of over 30 
			 1997 3,980 19,350 20.6 3,050 13,870 22.0 
			 1998 - - - 3,360 14,260 23.5 
			 1999 - - - 2,770 14,110 19.6 
			 2000 - - - 2,910 14,690 19.8 
			 20012,300 14,740 15.6 
			 2002 3,040 20,580 14.8 2,410 14.830 16.2 
			 2003 - - - 1,740 14,720 11.8 
			 2004 - - - 1,640 14,720 11.1 
			 2005 - - - 1.840 14,490 12.7 
			 2006 - - - 1,680 14,460 11.6 
			 2007 - - - 1,390 14,290 9.7 
			 2008 2,120 19,090 11.1 1,700 13,980 12.1 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes CTCs and academies. (3) One teacher classes as taught during a single selected period in each school on the day of the census in January.  Note: Pupil numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10-  Source: School Census

Departmental Accountancy

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when he expects to publish his Department's resource accounts for 2008-09.

Diana Johnson: The Department for Children, Schools and Families 2008-09 resource account was published on 9 July 2009 (ref. HC 448).

Departmental Budgets

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what scenario planning is being undertaken within his Department in relation to possible reductions in its budget; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: We are currently focused on embedding the 2010-11 budget savings, agreed as part of the Budget 2009 statement, into current and future plans in such a way as to protect front line delivery while achieving best value for money from the expenditure. Scenario planning will form part of our preparation for a future spending review.

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of employees in his Department  (a) are on a flexible working contract and  (b) work from home for more than four hours a week.

Diana Johnson: In the Department, any member of staff can request a change to their working pattern and line managers consider requests in line with the Department's policy and guidance. Staff below the senior civil service can also work to a flexi-time agreement and local records are kept of hours worked.
	Currently 15.5 per cent. of staff work part-time but we do not keep comprehensive central records of other flexible working arrangements and this information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	All employees can agree with their line managers to work from home occasionally and 64 per cent. have broadband access to the Department's systems through authorised encryption. We do not, however, keep central records of staff who work over four hours each week from home and information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Contracts

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many contracts let by his Department were awarded to businesses with fewer than 50 employees in each of the last five years; and what the monetary value of such contracts was in each such year.

Diana Johnson: This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Data Protection

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) attempts and  (b) successful attempts were made to gain unauthorised access to each (i) database and (ii) ICT system run by his Department in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: It is not in the interests of the UK's national security for departments to confirm information on the number of attempts, successful or otherwise, to gain unauthorised access to departmental systems or databases. Such disclosure could undermine the integrity and security of departmental systems and thereby expose them to potential threats.
	DCSF complies with the mandatory requirements of the Security Policy Framework in relation to information security including managing the risk of unauthorised access to ICT systems.

Departmental Databases

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what internal computer databases his Department maintains; and which of them contain personal information.

Diana Johnson: Department for Children, Schools and Families has a small number of internal corporate computer databases. In addition each directorate maintains its own smaller databases for a number of different purposes. We do not hold a central list of these databases and it would only be possible to provide details of them at disproportionate cost.
	The main internal corporate DCSF computer databases maintained are as follows:
	
		
			  Internal database  Purpose  Personal information 
			 IFIS Finance System Yes 
			 TRENT HR staff database Yes 
			 IWP (Intranet) Staff directory and numerous databases Yes 
			 Assyst Helpdesk call management and asset system Yes 
			 Meridio Electronic documents records management Yes 
			 ECHO Correspondence handling system Yes 
			 HONOURS Honours database system Yes 
			 BIS Briefing information system Yes

Departmental Electronic Education

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) photocopiers,  (b) scanning devices and  (c) fax machines, excluding multi-function devices, there are in his Department; how many there were in his Department and its predecessors in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: To reduce the use of power and consumables, the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) is in the process of replacing its printers, scanners, photocopiers and fax machines with multi-function devices across its sites.
	At this time, some single-function devices are still in use although it is anticipated that this number will diminish further to leave a very small number of single-function devices, primarily for reasonable adjustments and contingency purposes.
	The approximate number of single-function devices known to be currently in use within DCSF HQ sites is:
	Photocopiers: 0
	Scanners: 31
	Fax machines: 52
	DCSF does not maintain a comprehensive central list of the number of photocopiers, scanning devices or fax machines in use in past years throughout its estate and therefore the information as requested in the latter part of the question is not available. However, procurement records show that 138 leased photocopiers were in use throughout the Department in April 2007.
	The Department does not hold records for its arm's length bodies.

Departmental Pay

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much has been paid in bonuses to staff of each non-departmental body his Department sponsors in the last 12 months.

Diana Johnson: All non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) for which the Department of Children Schools and Families has responsibility for have their own remuneration and reward systems. Ministers are involved in agreeing pay remits for NDPBs in line with the Government's policy on public sector pay. Details of payments made to individual members of staff are not held centrally in the Department and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Procurement

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what changes have been made to his Department's  (a) office equipment and  (b) stationery purchasing policy in the last six months.

Diana Johnson: The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) is developing a category management approach to procurement which will result in realigning and brigading a number of our national contracts, including those for personalised printed business stationery and desktop stationery, to reduce costs and obtain better value for money.
	Initially this has resulted in the award, from 1 June 2009, of a six year contract for a publishing delivery service. Our existing national contract for personalised printed business stationery is currently in the process of being novated to this new contract and it is likely our national contract for desktop stationery will join at a future date.

Departmental Procurement

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what progress his Department has made in implementing the recommendations of the Glover Report in its procurement processes.

Diana Johnson: The Department for Children Schools and Families' commercial policy is based around the EU treaty principles of transparency, equal treatment, non-discrimination and proportionality for all its dealings with third parties.
	Consequently the Department has a good record for awarding contracts and grants to SMEs as they have an equal opportunity to gain the Department's work as any other organisation.
	The Department has already implemented a number of the 12 recommendations given in the Glover Report ('Accelerating the SME economic engine: through transparent, simple and strategic procurement').
	We utilise Supply2gov for our sub EU threshold requirements as well as for advertising competitive grants. Over EU threshold requirements are advertised in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) which is available online.
	To allow for electronic tendering the DCSF has licenses to the BRAVO system. The majority offenders are already issued electronically, and request electronic bids. Currently a paper version is still requested rather than encrypted electronic versions.
	It is a requirement for procurements subject to the Public Contract Regulations to have contract award notices published. However DCSF do not currently publish sub-threshold award notices as a matter of course though bidders are advised of the organisation the contract has been awarded to.
	All our procurements are open to all organisations in line with EU treaty principles.
	We use OGC's pre qualification questionnaire (PQQ), although the PQQ questions may change depending on the specific requirement the majority of the questions are asked in a standard format.
	Our policy is to evaluate all experience quoted by an organisation, against the same criteria.
	Any request for standards or certificates also specifies that equivalents are acceptable.
	Our innovation procurement plan will be published at the end of July 2009. Our commercial policy encourages innovative procurements through advertising and output based specifications.
	We use output based specifications on the majority of our procurements.
	We encourage prime contractors to subcontract to SME's and supported businesses. However currently it is not mandatory for prime contractors to advertise on Supply2gov or elsewhere.
	Our terms and conditions include requirements for reciprocal contract terms for subcontractors.
	We do not currently have the facilities to separate out and measure SME spend. However it is expected that the Ml from the new RM system due for implementation in November 2009 will provide this information.

Departmental Secondment

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many employees of his Department and its predecessors have been posted to work in offices of hon. Members of each political party in each of the last five years.

Diana Johnson: Civil servants are required to act in accordance with the requirements of the civil service code.

Departmental Work Experience

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many interns work in his Department; what terms of reference apply to their appointment; what remuneration they receive; and how long on average an intern appointment lasts.

Diana Johnson: The Department has recruited 32 graduate and undergraduate interns whose internships started on 29 June 2009 for six to eight weeks as part of a Cabinet Office internship programme. Successful candidates are nominated or allocated to the Department by the Cabinet Office from applications through its external recruitment website, at university campus events and through recruitment agencies that specialise in diversity.
	Payments for internships in 2009 are £350 per week in London and £300 per week outside London.
	The Department also intends to be part of the 'Graduate Talent Pool' programme that has been developed by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills.

Education Maintenance Allowance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department spent on education maintenance allowance for  (a) 16,  (b) 17,  (c) 18 and  (d) 19 year olds in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Iain Wright: The Department spent a total of £532.9 million on the education maintenance allowance in the academic year 2007/08. Information on how much was spent on education maintenance allowance is not broken down by age.

Education Maintenance Allowance: Morecambe

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many students in post-16 education in Morecambe and Lunesdale are in receipt of education maintenance allowance.

Iain Wright: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) who operate the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) for the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). Geoffrey Russell the LSC's Chief Executive, will write to the hon. Member with the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in the House Libraries.

Education: Morecambe

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much capital expenditure from the public purse there has been in the education sector in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: The Department allocates much of its capital resources to local authority areas. Information by constituency is not held centrally. Support for capital investment in schools in Lancashire is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   £ million 
			  Financial year  Schools 
			 1997-98 13.3 
			 1998-99 19.5 
			 1999-2000 (1)36.8 
			 2000-01 42.2 
			 2001-02 40.6 
			 2002-03 63.6 
			 2003-04 72.7 
			 2004-05 60.6 
			 2005-06 55.1 
			 2006-07 55.7 
			 2007-08 62.0 
			 2008-09 62.4 
			 2009-10 (2)91.8 
			 2010-11 (2)57.7 
			 (1) Includes a PFI project of £13.4 million. (2) Includes Primary Capital Programme. 
		
	
	In addition, Lancashire has a Building Schools for the Future wave 1 project with an indicative allocation of £77.9 million of conventional funding and £254.3 million of PFI credits.

Educational Visits

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many school educational visits to  (a) national museums and  (b) English Heritage sites there have been in each of the last five years.

Diana Johnson: Information is not collected centrally on school visits made to museums and English Heritage sites by primary and secondary schools in the UK.

Evolution: Curriculum

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he made of the merits of including learning about evolution in the scientific and technological understanding area of learning of the proposed primary curriculum; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: The proposed scientific and technological understanding area of learning was developed by a wide range of key stakeholders, including primary head teachers, teachers, subject specialists and learned societies. It contains the scientific and technological knowledge, skills and understanding stakeholders considered to be essential learning for children aged 5 to 11.
	The proposals are subject to a consultation exercise that closes on 24 July 2009. The consultation is available at
	www.qca.org.uk/curriculumconsultation.
	We will take final decisions on the proposals for a new primary curriculum in the autumn.

Foster Care

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many fostered children returned home after a period in care in the latest period for which figures are available.

Dawn Primarolo: Of the 12,600 children who ceased to be looked after during the year ending 31 March 2008 and were on a foster placement on ceasing, 7,000 returned home to live with parents or relatives with other parental responsibility.
	Further information about looked after children can be found in our publication 'Children looked after in England (including adoption and care leavers) year ending 31 March 2008', which is available on the Department's website via the following link. Table D1 gives a breakdown of the number of children who ceased to be looked after by reason episode ceased and table D2 shows the number who ceased to be looked after by their placement on ceasing.
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000810/index.shtml

Foster Care

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many children were placed in foster  (a) homes and  (b) placements outside their borough of residence on the latest date for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many children were in foster care on the latest date for which figures are available.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on how many children were placed in foster placements outside the boundary of the responsible local authority can be found in table A6 in the excel link labelled (1st set of additional tables)
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000810/index.shtml.
	Information on how many children were in foster care can be found in table A3 in the excel link labelled (National tables A1 to H1 from the SFR)
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000810/index.shtml.

GCE A-level

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils sat an A-level in  (a) media studies,  (b) psychology,  (c) law,  (d) mathematics,  (e) physics and  (f) history in each type of school or college in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: The information is presented in the following tables and covers students aged 16 to 18 attempting GCE A level examinations during the academic year in question.
	
		
			  Media Studies 
			  GCE A level entries in media/film/TV studies by institution type 
			   Comprehensive  Selective  Modern  Other maintained  Independent  Sixth Form college  Other FE college  All schools and colleges 
			 1997 2,821 228 95 1 160 3,048 2,601 8,954 
			 1998 3,468 351 149 1 174 3,639 3,023 10,805 
			 1999 4,135 318 215 0 214 3,688 2,804 11,374 
			 2000 4,651 401 211 0 243 3,692 2,968 12,166 
			 2001 5,472 421 229 0 269 4,180 3,085 13,656 
			 2002 7,031 668 310 5 377 5,100 3,258 16,749 
			 2003 8,489 659 412 3 476 5,764 3,467 19,270 
			 2004 9,837 863 480 28 514 5,743 3,525 20,990 
			 2005 10,516 936 505 56 525 5,592 3,337 21,467 
			 2006 11,501 1,033 616 61 603 5,782 3,390 22,986 
			 2007 11,645 1,011 640 107 623 5,852 3,435 23,313 
			 2008 12,661 1,019 606 123 606 5,617 3,503 24,135 
		
	
	
		
			  Psychology 
			  GCE A level entries in psychology by institution type 
			   Comprehensive  Selective  Modern  Other maintained  Independent  Sixth form college  Other FE college  All schools and colleges 
			 1997 6,230 837 44 2 463 6,670 8,016 22,262 
			 1998 7,782 1,021 60 0 575 6,898 7,543 23,879 
			 1999 8,586 1,168 84 0 595 6,658 6,718 23,809 
			 2000 9,669 1,283 110 0 790 6,697 6,524 25,073 
			 2001 11,109 1,468 138 0 751 6,927 6,290 26,683 
			 2002 14,066 2,034 167 1 1,404 8,081 6,255 32,008 
			 2003 16,830 2,702 237 4 2,033 9,528 6,563 37,897 
			 2004 19,484 3,113 305 59 2,505 10,309 7,032 42,807 
			 2005 21,696 3,585 444 63 2,507 10,987 6,741 46,023 
			 2006 23,003 3,883 556 73 2,799 11,504 6,753 48,571 
			 2007 22,743 3,890 639 117 2,820 11,650 6,744 48,603 
			 2008 23,379 3,948 626 132 3,035 11,565 6,749 49,434 
		
	
	
		
			  Law 
			  GCE A level entries in  law  by institution type 
			   Comprehensive  Selective  Modern  Other maintained  Independent  Sixth form college  Other FE college  All schools and colleges 
			 1997 1,073 136 28 0 169 2,133 3,714 7,253 
			 1998 1,129 141 37 0 137 2,135 3,526 7,105 
			 1999 1,243 164 27 0 153 2,330 3,300 7,217 
			 2000 1,396 157 48 0 138 2,339 3,111 7,189 
			 2001 1,356 156 41 0 158 2,596 3,091 7,398 
			 2002 1,727 208 48 0 169 3,298 3,056 8,506 
			 2003 2,161 249 64 0 186 4,195 3,242 10,097 
			 2004 2,764 264 73 0 232 4,847 3,661 11,841 
			 2005 3,172 259 128 9 201 5,222 3,660 12,651 
			 2006 3,717 314 145 18 188 5,444 3,685 13,511 
			 2007 3,976 341 148 17 198 5,440 3,699 13,819 
			 2008 4,262 376 142 22 169 5,623 3,604 14,198 
		
	
	
		
			  Mathematics 
			  GCE A level entries in  mathematics  by institution type 
			   Comprehensive  Selective  Modern  Other maintained  Independent  Sixth form college  Other FE college  All schools and colleges 
			 1997 22,612 5,738 169 3 12,804 8,805 5,842 55,973 
			 1998 22,709 6,196 237 0 12,854 8,991 5,602 56,589 
			 1999 22,860 6,174 241 0 12,871 8,800 5,154 56,100 
			 2000 22,237 6,099 243 0 11,967 8,278 4,850 53,674 
			 2001 22,363 6,373 212 0 12,120 8,474 4,615 54,157 
			 2002 17,469 5,426 189 1 10,515 6,884 3,672 44,156 
			 2003 17,558 5,502 238 0 10,519 7,036 3,600 44,453 
			 2004 18,001 5,708 212 28 10,885 7,317 3,866 46,017 
			 2005 18,435 5,646 210 33 10,476 7,604 3,630 46,034 
			 2006 19,632 6,337 294 41 11,685 8,158 3,658 49,805 
			 2007 21,088 6,962 351 109 11,872 8,950 3,999 53,331 
			 2008 22,891 7,539 382 113 12,534 9,757 4,402 57,618 
		
	
	continued
	
		
			  Physics 
			  GCE A level entries in  physics  by institution type 
			   Comprehensive  Selective  Modern  Other maintained  Independent  Sixth form college  Other FE college  All schools and colleges 
			 1997 12,126 3,305 67 0 6,454 3,915 2,835 28,702 
			 1998 12,546 3,582 107 0 6,648 4,018 2,771 29,672 
			 1999 12,694 3,575 92 0 6,734 3,881 2,576 29,552 
			 2000 12,098 3,622 101 0 6,467 3,528 2,375 28,191 
			 2001 12,052 3,568 105 0 6,455 3,601 2,250 28,031 
			 2002 12,221 3,603 117 0 6,190 3,527 2,202 27,860 
			 2003 11,175 3,537 127 1 6,143 3,390 1,905 26,278 
			 2004 10,202 3,298 102 17 6,037 3,071 1,879 24,606 
			 2005 10,313 3,339 123 21 5,469 3,086 1,743 24,094 
			 2006 9,916 3,167 133 21 5,651 3,198 1,571 23,657 
			 2007 9,921 3,291 152 41 5,423 3,426 1,633 23,887 
			 2008 10,118 3,491 159 39 5,627 3,503 1,766 24,703 
		
	
	
		
			  History 
			  GCE A level entries in  history  by institution type 
			   Comprehensive  Selective  Modern  Other maintained  Independent  Sixth form college  Other FE college  All schools and colleges 
			 1997 15,740 3,321 242 1 7,112 5,759 3,894 36,069 
			 1998 15,742 3,155 263 2 6,534 5,205 3,536 34,437 
			 1999 15,244 3,301 272 1 6,605 4,824 3,159 33,406 
			 2000 15,241 3,173 277 3 6,454 4,881 3,111 33,140 
			 2001 15,498 3,404 293 0 6,555 5,053 3,027 33,830 
			 2002 16,798 3,698 267 2 6,853 5,118 2,777 35,513 
			 2003 17,138 3,884 329 4 6,849 5,323 2,986 36,513 
			 2004 17,957 4,076 375 16 7,167 5,532 3,027 38,150 
			 2005 18,532 4,237 419 27 7,084 5,979 2,920 39,198 
			 2006 19,401 4,313 443 27 7,150 6,252 3,087 40,673 
			 2007 19,279 4,447 429 65 7,174 6,181 2,967 40,542 
			 2008 20,042 4,541 440 76 7,377 6,439 3,192 42,107

GCE A-level

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of year 13 students in comprehensive maintained schools were entered for one or more A-level examinations in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: It is not possible to provide the proportion of year 13 students entered for A level examinations. It is normal in post-16 statistics to give figures as a percentage of candidates entered for qualifications at least equivalent to one A level. That would not make sense in this context-all the percentages would be 100 per cent.
	The numbers required are given in the following table:
	
		
			   Number of students in comprehensive schools entered for A levels 
			 1996/97 90,697 
			 1997/98 95,508 
			 1998/99 97,050 
			 1999/2000 96,998 
			 2000/01 100,940 
			 2001/02 107,197 
			 2002/03 111,565 
			 2003/04 113,013 
			 2004/05 116,452 
			 2005/06 116,545 
			 2006/07 113,081 
			 2007/08 116,947 
			  Notes: 1. Figures relate to all comprehensive schools including Academies and CTCs. 2. Figures relate to 16-18 year olds (age at start of academic year, i.e. 31st August) at the end of their advanced study. Figures for 1996/97 to 1999/2000 relate to all 16-18 year olds. 3. Figures for 1996/97 to 1999/2000 relate to entries in GCE A levels. 4. Since 2001, figures relate to entries in GCE/VCE/applied A levels and double awards. 5. Figures for 2001 onwards were taken from table 1 of the following statistical first releases: 2001 and 2002 http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000387/index.shtml 2003 http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000475/index.shtml 2004 http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000586/index.shtml 2005 http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000663/index.shtml 2006 http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000703/index.shtml 2007 http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000769/index.shtml 2008 http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s00Q827/index.shtml 6. Figures prior to 2001 were derived from the achievement and attainment tables. data.

GCE A-level: Females

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of A-level examinations in  (a) physics,  (b) chemistry,  (c) mathematics,  (d) information and communications technology and  (e) a modern language were sat by women in each year since 2001; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: The information required is as follows:
	
		
			   Number of entries by females  Percentage of entries made by females  All entries 
			  Chemistry
			 2008 17,703 48.7 36,328 
			 2007 17,406 49.6 35,077 
			 2006 16,814 48.7 34,534 
			 2005 16,380 49.4 33,164 
			 2004 16,289 50.7 32,130 
			 2003 15,941 51.3 31,065 
			 2002 16,392 50.7 32,324 
			 2001 16,747 49.4 33,871 
			 
			  Physics
			 2008 5,285 21.4 24,703 
			 2007 5,194 21.7 23,887 
			 2006 4,970 21.0 23,657 
			 2005 5,174 21.5 24,094 
			 2004 5,383 21.9 24,606 
			 2003 5,908 22.5 26,278 
			 2002 6,319 22.7 27,860 
			 2001 6,021 21.5 28,031 
			 
			  Mathematics
			 2008 22,809 39.6 57,618 
			 2007 21,177 39.7 53,331 
			 2006 19,168 38.5 49,805 
			 2005 17,423 37.8 46,034 
			 2004 17,638 38.3 46,017 
			 2003 16,753 37.7 44,453 
			 2002 16,381 37.1 44,156 
			 2001 20,254 37.4 54,157 
			 
			  ICT
			 2008 3,561 36.8 9,670 
			 2007 3,994 36.7 10,885 
			 2006 4,332 35.6 12,181 
			 2005 4,504 35.0 12,853 
			 2004 5,031 34.8 14,449 
			 2003 5,575 34.2 16,309 
			 2002 5,224 34.7 15,037 
			 2001 3,044 33.0 9,216 
			 
			  Modern Foreign Languages
			 2008 18,992 64.5 29,423 
			 2007 18,250 64.3 28,377 
			 2006 18,121 64.7 28,010 
			 2005 17,320 65.0 26,665 
			 2004 17,730 65.5 27,052 
			 2003 17,989 65.5 27,475 
			 2002 18,715 66.2 28,256 
			 2001 20,800 67.3 30,910 
			  Note: Figures relate to 16 to 18-year-olds (age at start of academic year, i.e. 31 August) in all schools.  Source: School and College Achievement and Attainment Tables data. 
		
	
	The numbers of entries used to answer this PQ are taken from table 11 of the following Statistical First Release:
	DCSF: GCEA/CE/Applied A/AS and Equivalent Results in England, 2007/08 (Revised):
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000827/index.shtml

GCSE

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many students in  (a) comprehensive and  (b) independent schools achieved an A* in GCSE (i) history and (ii) English literature in 2008.

Diana Johnson: The figures are given in the following table:
	
		
			  Number of students who in 2008 achieved A* at GCSE in selected subjects 
			  Subject  Comprehensive  Independent 
			 English literature 14,765 6,924 
			 History 11,048 7,376 
			  Source:  National Pupil Database (NPD). 
		
	
	Figures relate to pupils at the end of key stage 4.

GCSE

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average change was in the percentage of pupils gaining five A* to C GCSE grades in  (a) academies and  (b) other schools between 2004 and 2008.

Vernon Coaker: Only 11 academies have been open over the full period 2004 to 2008.
	The proportion of pupils achieving 5 + GCSEs at grades A*-C or equivalent in these schools increased from 24.2 per cent. in 2004 to 36.9 per cent. in 2008, an increase of 12.7 percentage points. The equivalent figures for all schools (maintained mainstream schools, CTCs and academies) showed an increase from 53.0 per cent. in 2004 to 65.6 per cent. in 2008, an increase of 12.6 percentage points.
	The proportion of pupils achieving 5 + GCSEs at grades A*-C or equivalent including English and maths in the 11 academies with data for 2004 and 2008 increased from 12.0 per cent. in 2004 to 26.4 per cent. in 2008, an increase of 14.4 percentage points. Over the same period there was an increase in the proportion of pupils achieving 5 + GCSEs or equivalent including English and maths nationally from 41.1 per cent. to 49.1 per cent., an increase of 8.0 percentage points.
	Further detail is provided in the following table:
	
		
			   Maintained mainstream schools, CTCs and academies  Academies with results 2004 to 2008  (11 schools) 
			  5+A* to C (percentage) 5+A* to C incl. English and maths (percentage) 5+A* to C (percentage) 5+A* to C incl. English and maths (percentage) 
			 2004 53.0 41.1 24.2 12.0 
			 2005 55.6 43.1 27.2 13.1 
			 2006 58.2 44.7 29.6 17.5 
			 2007 61.0 46.6 32.2 19.4 
			 2008 65.6 49.1 36.9 26.4 
			 Percentage point change 2004-08 12.6 8.0 12.7 14.4 
			  Notes: 1. 5 + A* to C (percentage) refers to the proportion of pupils achieving five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C. 2. 5 + A* to C (percentage) including English and maths refers to the proportion of pupils achieving five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C including GCSEs in English and maths at grade C or above. Both measures include equivalent qualifications. 3. The 2007 data for academies are based on only 10 schools because Walsall Academy had no results in 2007. When quoting figures it is advisable to focus on the change between 2004 and 2008 as data for these years are based on the same number of schools and are therefore directly comparable. 4. Coverage for the 'maintained mainstream schools, CTCs and academies' figures is all schools (including the 11 Academies for which results are presented separately). The total number of schools in this category varies year on year.  Source:  2008 DCSF national pupil database

GCSE

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of pupils in  (a) academies and  (b) other schools did not achieve five A* to C GCSE grades in 2008.

Vernon Coaker: The proportions of pupils achieving at least five A*-C grades at GCSE and equivalent by school type are given in table 6 of the statistical first release on GCSE and equivalent results in England, 2007/08 (revised), accessible via:
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000826/index.shtml
	The proportions of pupils who did not achieve this standard can be derived from this table.

GCSE

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many and what proportion of pupils who attended independent schools have been entered for GCSE Latin in each year since 1997;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of pupils have been entered for GCSE Latin in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: The information requested can be found in the following table:
	
		
			  Number and proportion of students in all schools and in independent schools entered for GCSE Latin in each year since 1997 
			   All schools  Independent schools 
			   Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			 1997 10,992 1.9 7,151 17.1 
			 1998 10,076 1.8 6,692 16.5 
			 1999 9,708 1.7 6,403 15.0 
			 2000 9,598 1.7 6,213 14.5 
			 2001 9,796 1.6 6,287 14.3 
			 2002 9,479 1.6 6,203 14.1 
			 2003 9,350 1.5 6,033 13.6 
			 2004 9,190 1.4 6,093 13.0 
			 2005 9,177 1.4 6,181 13.2 
			 2006 9,556 1.5 6,299 12.9 
			 2007 9,563 1.5 6,574 13.7 
			 2008 9,378 1.4 6,329 13.2 
			  Source:  Attainment and Achievement Tables (AATs). 
		
	
	Figures for 1997-2003 are based on 15-year-olds. Figures for 2004-08 are based on pupils at the end of KS4.

Health Education: Sex

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  when information on how to obtain an abortion was first included in school sex education lessons; at what age pupils are provided with such information; whom he consulted on the matter; what recent representations he has received  (a) in favour of and  (b) against the current policy; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what research his Department  (a) has commissioned,  (b) plans to commission and  (c) has evaluated on the effectiveness of teaching sex education in schools; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: Apart from the statutory elements of Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) that are included in National Curriculum Science, schools currently have flexibility to decide the content of SRE provided within Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE). DCSF has provided a non-statutory programme of study indicating what it believes it is appropriate to include within PSHE which-in Key Stage 4 (age 14 to 16)-includes 'informing pupils about where they can go to obtain health information'. This would include information, advice and treatment on contraception and sexual health issues. Subject to public consultation, the Government intend to make PSHE (and the programme of study that underpins it) statutory. First and foremost, however, the principal aim of SRE is to encourage young people to delay early sexual activity. Within secondary schools pupils are taught the skills to enable them to avoid being pressurised into unwanted or unprotected sex, and given factual information to enable them to negotiate safer sex when they do become sexually active. However, we make it clear in our "Sex and Relationship Education Guidance" (July 2000) to schools that any programme of study must be tailored to the age and the physical and emotional maturity of the children.
	As part of the Children's Plan we gave a commitment to review best practice in effective sex and relationship education (SRE) and how it is delivered in schools. Importantly, we involved young people fully in the review, many of whom told us that they did not have the knowledge they needed to make safe and responsible choices about relationships and sexual health.
	International evidence, as well as evidence from local areas that have made most progress in reducing under-18 conception rates since the Teenage Pregnancy Strategy was launched, shows that comprehensive, age-appropriate SRE, alongside easy access to contraceptive and sexual health services, brings down rates.
	In response to the review recommendations, we announced our intention, subject to public consultation, to make SRE compulsory as part of statutory Personal Social Health and Economic (PSHE) education. This will ensure that as well as receiving factual information, children and young people will have the opportunities to develop the skills they need to deal with the real life situations they face.
	We asked Sir Alasdair Macdonald to conduct an independent review of how the principle that PSHE should have statutory status can be translated into a practicable way forward. Following the publication of Sir Alasdair's review in April there is now a full public consultation on his recommendations, including the programmes of study to be included within statutory PSHE. This is scheduled to be completed by the end of the summer term, following which the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority will analyse the results and report to Ministers.

Learning Grid Programmes

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the effect of Learning Grid programmes on the teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects in schools; what funding his Department has provided for the Learning Grid in each year since it was founded; and what the Government's future plans for the Learning Grid are.

Diana Johnson: The Department has not provided any funding for the Learning Grid or made any assessment of the impact that the Learning Grid has had upon teaching of STEM subjects in schools. Similarly, because the Department is not involved in funding or managing the work of the Learning Grid, we do not have any plans for its future development or sustainability.

Manufacturing the Future Programme

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many people will work on the Manufacturing the Future programme in schools when the programme becomes operational; how many are working to prepare the programme; when the programme will start; how much has been spent on preparing the programme; and how much funding has been allocated for the programme in total.

Kevin Brennan: I have been asked to reply.
	A part of the Manufacturing the Future programme focuses on presenting young people in schools and colleges, with positive images of the wide range of good careers in the Manufacturing sector. STEMNET (the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Network) has been tasked with preparing a set of six product based case studies, which will be resources for teachers, to demonstrate the breadth of careers within the manufacturing sector. The products have been carefully selected as being of genuine interest to young people, particularly teenagers. STEMNET began this work in January 2009, and will complete it in July 2009, with the expectation that the resources will be posted to every UK secondary school during September 2009. A total of £54,000 has been allocated to this particular project. This will pay for six individual products to be featured, each of which contains a number of 'real-life' examples of the people who have used STEM and related skills in their manufacture.

National Curriculum Tests

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of children from the  (a) 10 and  (b) 20 per cent. most deprived local authorities who did not attain the national standard in (a) English, (b) mathematics and (c) science in Key Stage 1 assessment achieved the national standard in Key Stage 2 assessments in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Outdoor Education

Geoffrey Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he is taking to provide children with access to outdoor and adventurous school-related activities.

Diana Johnson: In November 2006 the Department launched the Learning Outside the Classroom Manifesto with the aim that every young person should experience the world beyond the classroom as an essential part of learning and personal development, whatever their age, ability or circumstances. The Manifesto partnership is steered by a National Advisory Group (NAG) made up from representatives from each of the eight Manifesto sectors, specialist advisers, and user representatives. Adventurous Activities are included as one of the eight sector partnerships.
	Since its launch, and with the help of the Manifesto partnership, the Department has:
	produced on-line training, resources and guidance available for schools, youth clubs and early years settings to help them plan and implement a successful all types of learning outside the classroom experiences for their learners.
	www.lotc.org.uk
	launched a new Quality Badge to bring together existing badges combining the essential elements of provision-learning and safety-into one easily recognisable and trusted Badge for all types of Learning Outside the Classroom provider organisations.
	www.lotcqualitybadge.org.uk
	launched a new Independent Council for Learning Outside the Classroom to promote and champion learning outside the classroom, and to become a leading voice, influencing and challenging relevant policy and practice. By raising the profile of learning outside the classroom, the Council will promote its benefits and aim to increase the number of quality learning experiences outside the classroom.
	In addition, between 2004 and 2008, the Department has provided opportunities for nearly 35,000 young people to take part in a range of adventurous and curriculum-focused residential courses. This formed part of the London Challenge's £7.4 million New Views project to widen young Londoner's experiences and raise their aspirations.

Primary Education: Free School Meals

Howard Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what funding is available to maintained primary schools to meet the cost of providing a free school meal service for all their pupils.

Diana Johnson: Funding for the provision of school meals, including free school meals is given to all local authorities via their Standards Fund allocation. It is for individual local authorities to decide how much funding to allocate to school meal provision. Where a primary school chooses to manage its own budget for school meals, it is also responsible for deciding how much to allocate.
	Schools must provide free school meals to pupils from families that meet the national eligibility criteria and who have registered to receive them. In addition, local authorities may choose to provide free meals for all pupils or a particular phase of pupils such as primary pupils, if they choose to do so. This department and the Department of Health are jointly funding pilots with three local authorities to evaluate the benefits of extending eligibility to free school meals within England.

Qualifications and Curriculum Authority

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on what date Dr. Ken Boston offered his resignation from the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority; and on what date it was accepted.

Iain Wright: Dr. Ken Boston offered his resignation to the board of QCA on 12 December 2008. QCA announced his resignation the following day. A full investigation and review by the board of QCA was then undertaken. QCA announced the acceptance of his resignation and termination of employment on 1 April 2009.

Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when the measures to regulate childcare for children under eight years old contained in the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 will be implemented; and whether they will apply to children's crèches.

Dawn Primarolo: A person who is barred from working with children is already barred from working in child care for under-8s, including in a crèche, under current barring schemes. From October 2009, the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) will bar unsuitable persons from "regulated activity" under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006, replacing current barred lists. Working with under-8s, or with children in a crèche, will both be included in regulated activity. From July 2010, we will start to phase in a duty for staff to register with the ISA under the Act. That duty will also apply to those working in regulated activity with children, including in children's crèches.

School Meals

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of  (a) primary and  (b) secondary schools in each local authority area had (i) no kitchen facilities for producing school meals and (ii) no daily access to hot school meals for pupils in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: The Department for Children, Schools and Families does not collect this information.

Schools

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his most recent assessment is of levels of compliance with his Department's guidance to schools on measures to accommodate  (a) religious and  (b) cultural beliefs.

Vernon Coaker: The Department does not undertake assessment of the levels of compliance with guidance to schools on measures to accommodate religious or cultural beliefs. However, Ofsted, as part of its inspection framework does monitor the extent to which the school promotes equality and tackles discrimination.

Schools for the Future - Inspirational Design for Kitchen and Dining Spaces

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's document, Schools for the Future - Inspirational Design for Kitchen and Dining Spaces.

Vernon Coaker: I will arrange for a copy of the document to be placed in the House Libraries. The Department has also recently published "Kitchen and Dining Spaces-a Design Note" which provides a summary of key design points, mainly for school heads and governors. The booklet is available at the following address
	http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/wholeschool/healthyliving/schoolfoodanddrink/diningrooms/

Schools: Admissions

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many school places there are in  (a) Hemel Hempstead,  (b) Dacorum and  (c) Hertfordshire.

Diana Johnson: The Department collects information annually from each local authority on the number of school places at schools in their area, as part of the surplus places survey. The latest data available relate to the position as at January 2008. The following table gives a breakdown of the capacity of schools located in  (a) Hemel Hempstead  (b) Dacorum and  (c) Hertfordshire.
	
		
			  Area  Primary school capacity  Secondary school capacity 
			 Hemel Hempstead 9,017 7,928 
			 Dacorum 11,669 11,452 
			 Hertfordshire 93,532 88,293

Schools: Asbestos

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what recent assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policy on the wellbeing of children of the presence of asbestos in schools; and if he would make a statement;
	(2)  what measures are in place to  (a) identify and  (b) remove asbestos in schools being refurbished under (i) Building Schools for the Future and (ii) the Primary Capital Programme.

Vernon Coaker: Asbestos in schools should be managed in accordance with the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006. The legal requirements and associated guidance provides a framework that enables those responsible for schools to manage the risks from asbestos within school buildings. Asbestos is identified by surveys and removed where necessary in accordance with HSE guidance. Partnerships for Schools has included requirements for asbestos surveys in its standard contract documentation for Building Schools for the Future. Work carried out under the Primary Capital programme is subject to local procurement and asbestos management procedures which must comply with the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006.
	It is DCSF and HSE's assessment that where asbestos is managed in accordance with the Control of Asbestos Regulations teachers and pupils are not likely to be at risk in the course of their normal activities.
	Providing asbestos materials are maintained in good condition they can normally be left in situ and managed until the building reaches the end of its life when the asbestos containing materials can be removed without risk of exposing building users to risks arising from significant disturbance.

Schools: Biometrics

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  if he will make it obligatory for schools to obtain the written consent of a child's parents before assembling biometric data on a child based on fingerprint recognition;
	(2)  if he will make it obligatory for schools to destroy biometric data based on fingerprint recognition they hold on pupils when a child leaves their school;
	(3)  what steps he will take to ensure that  (a) police forces and  (b) other third parties have no direct or indirect access to biometric data based on fingerprint recognition held by schools in relation to their pupils.

Vernon Coaker: In July 2007 Becta issued guidance on the use of biometric technology in schools. This guidance was supported by complementary guidance from the Information Commissioner's Office. The Becta guidance made it clear that while consent is not required for all processing of personal data under the Data Protection Act, schools should normally involve pupils and parents in their decisions to use biometric technologies, as is the case with other decisions made during the school life of children.
	The Becta guidance also makes it clear that schools must follow the Data Protection Act in regards to the retention and storage of personal data. In accordance with the Act, schools must ensure all personal data are processed fairly and lawfully, for limited purposes, in line with individuals' rights and not held for longer than necessary. Additionally, schools need to issue a fair processing notice (FPN) to parents summarising the information held about their child or children, why it is held, and the third parties to whom it may be passed on.

Schools: Closures

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many schools have been placed in special measures more than once since 1997; and how many of those schools have been closed.

Vernon Coaker: This is a matter for Ofsted. HMCI Christine Gilbert has written to the hon. Member and a copy will be placed in the Library.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 17 July 2009:
	Parliamentary question number 287222: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many schools have been placed in special measures more than once since 1997 and how many of those schools have been closed.
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	Between 1 September 1997 and 3 April 2009, 72 maintained schools were placed in special measures more than once, including one school that had been placed in special measures three times. Twenty three of these schools are now closed.
	Of the 72 schools that required special measures a second time, seven remained in special measures at their re-inspection without ever being removed from this category. Data for the summer term 2009 have not yet been published and are not included in these figures.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Vernon Coaker MP, Minister of State for Schools and Learners, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.

Schools: Construction

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what guidance his Department issues to local authorities on the construction of new school buildings.

Vernon Coaker: The Department publishes a wide range of design guidance for new school buildings and remodelling existing buildings. The current list of publications available can be found on the following website at:
	http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/management/resourcesfinanceandbuilding/schoolbuildings/sbdupublications/
	For Building Schools for the Future projects, Partnership for Schools publishes design specification guidance. The guidance is available on the following website at:
	http://www.partnershipsforschools.org.uk/library/bsf_standard_docs.jsp#OutputSpecification
	The Department and Partnerships for Schools also publish a range of design case studies.

Schools: Governing Bodies

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the statement of 30 June 2009,  Official Report, columns 165-80, on 21st century schools, how many members he expects a slimmer school governing body to comprise; and what criteria he plans to apply to reduce the size of school governing bodies.

Vernon Coaker: Governing bodies of maintained schools in England are constituted under a stakeholder model which prescribes the percentage representation of each group on the governing body. They can vary in total size from nine to 20 members. It is not our intention to prescribe a smaller size. Each governing body will continue to be free to choose a membership of between nine and 20 which best suits their individual circumstances. We will, however, relax the percentages in the stakeholder model, while retaining safeguards to ensure that each stakeholder group is represented and that there is no reduction in the percentage of parent governors, to give further freedom to governing bodies to choose the optimal membership to meet their needs.

Schools: Hemsworth

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many full-time equivalent  (a) teachers,  (b) teaching assistants and  (c) support staff there were in local education authority schools in (i) the Wakefield district and (ii) Hemsworth constituency in (A) 1997 and (B) at the latest date for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: The following table provides the full-time equivalent number of teachers, teaching assistants and support staff in service in local authority maintained schools in Wakefield local authority and Hemsworth constituency in January 1997 and 2008, the latest year for which information is available.
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent teachers, teaching assistants and support staff in local authority maintained schools( 1) ; Years: January 1997 and 2008; Coverage: Wakefield local authority and Hemsworth constituency 
			   1997  2008 
			   Wakefield  Hemsworth  Wakefield  Hemsworth 
			 Teachers(2) 2.670 850 2,830 960 
			 Teaching assistants(3) 540 170 1,200 430 
			 Support staff(3,4) 1,000 320 2,160 720 
			 (1) Excludes academies and city technology colleges. (2) Source: Annual survey of teachers and teacher vacancies (618g) for Wakefield, School Census for Hemsworth. (3) Source: School Census. (4) Includes teaching assistants.

Schools: Hemsworth

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average pupil-to-teacher ratio in maintained  (a) primary and  (b) secondary schools in Hemsworth constituency was in each year since 1996-97.

Vernon Coaker: The following table provides the pupil:teacher ratios in local authority maintained primary and secondary schools in Hemsworth constituency in January of each year, 1997 to 2008, the latest year for which information is available.
	
		
			  Pupil:teacher ratio (PTR)( 1)  of local authority maintained primary and secondary schools( 2) ; Years: January 1997 to 2008; Coverage: Hemsworth constituency 
			   Pupil:teacher ratio 
			   Primary  Secondary 
			 1997 24:7 17:2 
			 1998 24:9 17:2 
			 1999 24:8 18:1 
			 2000 24:7 18:2 
			 2001 23:6 18:1 
			 2002 23:0 17:5 
			 2003 23:2 17:8 
			 2004 23:5 17:2 
			 2005 23:9 16:6 
			 2006 23:3 16:3 
			 2007 23:2 16:0 
			 2008 23:1 15:6 
			 (1) The within-school PTR is calculated by dividing the total FTE number of pupils on roll in schools by the total FTE number of qualified teachers regularly employed in schools. (2) Excludes academies.  Source: School Census

Schools: Hemsworth

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what capital funding has been allocated to schools in Hemsworth constituency in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: The Department allocates much of its capital resources to local authority areas. Information by constituency is not held centrally. Support for capital investment in schools in Wakefield local authority is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Financial year  £ million 
			 1997-98 5.2 
			 1998-99 7.9 
			 1999-2000 7.4 
			 2000-01 13.4 
			 2001-02 13.7 
			 2002-03 17.3 
			 2003-04 20.6 
			 2004-05 19.4 
			 2005-06 21.2 
			 2006-07 16.7 
			 2007-08 15.7 
			 2008-09 15.0 
			 2009-10 (1)24.5 
			 2010-11 (1)23.3 
			 (1 )Includes Primary Capital Programme.

Schools: Inspection

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 16 June 2009,  Official Report, columns 235-6W, on Ofsted: finance, what the projected future costs are of the new schools' inspection regime in each year for which information is available.

Vernon Coaker: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply has been placed in the House Libraries.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 14 July 2009:
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	In response to parliamentary question 278406, I provided information on the gross cost of the inspection of schools. This information was derived from a detailed analysis of Ofsted's 2008-09 and prior year financial accounts. At the end of each year, we undertake a retrospective analysis of our costs. It is not possible to produce such a projected analysis of similarly specific costs because of the scale of change in place in Ofsted; several major changes to Ofsted's organisational structure and operations will be implemented at the same time as the introduction of the new school inspection regime. We are also currently planning to outsource significant aspects of our early years work and this will impact on support costs.
	Consequently, we cannot provide meaningful projections of the future gross cost of the inspection of schools, which are comparable with the costs included in our previous response. This information will not be available until spring 2010.
	However, I am able to provide details of the estimated savings in the direct costs of the schools' inspection activity, excluding the indirect and overhead costs that were included in the figures provided in our previous response. This covers those inspections affected by the introduction of the new inspection regime, including those carried out under Section 5 of the Education Act 2005 (the routine programme of inspections of maintained schools) and those carried out under Section 8 of the Education Act 2005 (additional monitoring visits for maintained schools judged to be in a category of concern or judged to be satisfactory). Currently, the annual saving as a result of the introduction of the new inspection regime is projected to be £3.9m. This represents a 7.8% savings on the direct cost of the inspection of schools in 2008-09. These savings are based on a range of assumptions, for example, the number of active schools in the future and the proportion of schools judged good or better.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Vernon Coaker MP, Minister of State for Schools and Learners, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.

Schools: Internet

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to paragraph 2.38, page 40 of his Department's publication, Your child, your schools, our future, what estimate he has made of the likely cost of the virtual school gates pilot programme for parents and carers.

Diana Johnson: The Department is currently in on-going discussions with Netmums and the Family Matters Institute, which runs Dad Talk, about the virtual school gates pilot which will build on their existing web services. We estimate it will cost up to £60,000 plus evaluation costs.

Schools: Manpower

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many support staff were employed in English schools in  (a) 1997,  (b) 2002,  (c) 2006 and  (d) 2008.

Vernon Coaker: The requested information is contained in Table 1 of the School Workforce in England (including pupil: teacher ratios and pupil: adult ratios), January 2009 (Provisional) Statistical First Release published in May 2009:
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000844/index.shtml

Schools: Nurses

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will take steps to ensure that school nurses and school health workers are informed of the life-saving service provided by the MedicAlert Foundation; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: The Department has not taken steps to specifically promote MedicAlert services. The use of various devices bearing clinical and other information carried on the person to be accessible to healthcare staff in the event of injury, illness or exacerbation of a pre-existing condition, is already widely recognised as an option. Their use is a matter of personal choice.
	In February we published, jointly with the Department for Health, 'Healthy Lives, Brighter Futures: The strategy for children and young people's health', copies of which have been placed in the Library. The strategy includes a commitment to update the 2005 document 'Managing Medicines in Schools and Early Years Settings'. This guidance addresses the need for schools to have access to the information necessary to support children with healthcare needs who fall ill, and the contact details and arrangements appropriate to managing the situation.

Schools: Output Area Code

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the lower layer super output area code is for each  (a) maintained mainstream and  (b) independent school in England.

Vernon Coaker: The requested information has been placed in the House Libraries. Information on schools in England including geographic information area can be found on EduBase, the Department's database of educational establishments
	www.edubase.gov.uk

Schools: Playing Fields

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many maintained schools do not have a playing field.

Vernon Coaker: The Department does not hold an estimate of the number of maintained schools that do not have playing fields.
	Whether or not schools have on-site playing fields, which may not be possible in urban settings, they are required to have access to team game playing fields proportionate to their pupil numbers and type.

Schools: Public Expenditure

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many primary schools in  (a) the Vale of York,  (b) North Yorkshire and  (c) England have had revenue balances in excess of those predicted in each year since 1997;
	(2)  how many secondary schools in  (a) the Vale of York,  (b) North Yorkshire and  (c) England have had revenue balances in excess of those predicted in each year since 1997;
	(3)  what the  (a) revenues raised by and  (b) public expenditure on (i) primary and (ii) secondary schools in (A) the Vale of York and (B) England has been in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: The Department collects figures of the balances held by schools and the amount of revenues raised by schools via the section 52 outturn statements. We have collected information on balances since 1999-2000 and information on revenues raised since 2002-03. There are no figures available for previous years. The section 52 outturn statements are completed by all local authorities in England and we request only the final figures for the schools in their area. We do not collect predicted figures.
	The following table shows the number of schools in York, North Yorkshire and England that held surplus balances from 1999-2000 to 2007-08. The Department does not hold figures by constituency.
	
		
			  Number of maintained primary and secondary schools in surplus( 1)  in England and York and North Yorkshire local authorities: 1999-2000 to 2007-08( 2) 
			   LA name  Primary schools in surplus  Secondary schools in surplus 
			 1999-2000 England 16,695 2,700 
			  North Yorkshire 317 42 
			  York 61 9 
			 
			 2000-01 England 17,138 2,919 
			  North Yorkshire 323 43 
			  York 57 10 
			 
			 2001-02 England 17,093 2,857 
			  North Yorkshire 329 44 
			  York 56 10 
			 
			 2002-03 England 16,535 2,693 
			  North Yorkshire 324 42 
			  York 51 8 
			 
			 2003-04 England 16,187 2,756 
			  North Yorkshire 323 41 
			  York 49 8 
			 
			 2004-05 England 16,506 2,834 
			  North Yorkshire 327 43 
			  York 50 9 
			 
			 2005-06 England 16,302 2,745 
			  North Yorkshire 327 42 
			  York 51 8 
			 
			 2006-07 England 16,213 2,740 
			  North Yorkshire 325 42 
			  York 51 9 
			 
			 2007-08 England 16,276 2,829 
			  North Yorkshire 319 39 
			  York 50 11 
			 (1) A school's total revenue balance is calculated from the combination of any unspent allocations (including unspent standards fund grants) and the cumulative balance of income less expenditure from revenue funding sources during the financial year and any balances carried forward from previous years. This is drawn by adding together the unspent allocations and balance carried forward columns from local authorities section 52 outturn statements 1999-2000 to 2001-02 (table 2), consistent financial reporting categories B01 and B02 from local authorities section 52 outturn statements (table B) 2002-03 to 2005-06 and consistent financial reporting categories B01, B02 and B06 from local authorities section 52 outturn statements (table B) 2006-07 onwards. (2) School level revenue balances are not available prior to the inception of Section 52 for the 1999-2000 financial year. 
		
	
	In February 2009, we published the figures for balances and deficits held by schools for the financial year 2007-08. The information for 2008-09 is due to be submitted to the Department by 25 August 2009.
	The following table shows the amount of revenue that schools have raised which are held by schools with their budget. These figures are presented alongside the amount of public expenditure allocated on a national and local authority level for York. Further information on these figures can be found in the section 52 outturn statements which the Department publishes on our website at:
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/localauthorities/section52/subPage.cfm?action=section52.default&ID=64
	Note that if schools form a company for the use of their premises for community purposes and hold a separate bank account for these charges, then the funds raised in that account are not subject to the provisions laid upon school revenue funding but are subject to company law.
	
		
			  Revenue raised by England and York local authority maintained primary and secondary schools in England: 2002-03 to 2007-08, compared with public expenditure 
			Total income including donations and/or voluntary funds( 1)  Total funding( 2) 
			Primary  Secondary  Primary  Secondary 
			 2002-03 England 551,138,796 707,095,785 10,494,337,638 10,541,823,696 
			  York 1,408,066 1,818,593 32,437,446 31,533,495 
			   
			 2003-04 England 623,614,541 788,227,393 11,401,399,490 11,924,975,908 
			  York 1,521,827 1,495,139 33,264,389 34,908,444 
			   
			 2004-05 England 667,015,306 873,081,128 12,035,908,906 12,752,004,480 
			  York 1,932,485 1,676,790 35,772,953 38,072,974 
			   
			 2005-06 England 750,736,189 994,129,752 12,789,877,891 13,555,581,500 
			  York 2,692,088 2,311,242 38,166,522 39,401,808 
			   
			 2006-07 England 785,448,729 1,032,332,053 13,498,889,480 14,295,028,942 
			  York 2,822,511 2,961,480 40,168,539 40,640,659 
			   
			 2007-08 England 871,799,097 1,099,864,863 14,347,256,953 15,148,426,895 
			  York 3,310,897 3,581,284 41,960,380 42,965,892 
			 (1) For the years 2002-03 to 2005-06 these totals include "Other grants and payments received" (I07), "Income from facilities and services" (I08), "Income from catering" (I09), "Receipts from supply teacher insurance claims" (I10), "Receipts from other insurance claims" (I11), "Income from contributions to visits etc." (I12) and "Donations and/or voluntary funds" (I13). For subsequent years they include these plus "Community focused extended school facilities income" (I17). (2) For the years 2002-03 to 2005-06 these totals include "Funds delegated by the LA" (I01), "Funding for sixth form students" (I02), "SEN Funding" (I03), "Funding for minority ethnic pupils" (I04), "Standards Fund" (I05) and "Other government grants" (I06). For subsequent years they include these plus "School Standards Grant (SSG)-Pupil focused" (I14), "Pupil focused extended school funding and/or grants" (I15) and "Community focused extended school funding and/or grants" (I16).  Note: Cash terms figures as reported by local authorities as at 16 July.  Source: The Education (Outturn Statements) (England) Regulations

Schools: Specialised Diplomas

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which  (a) maintained mainstream schools and  (b) independent schools are offering a diploma course in the 2008-09 academic year; and how many pupils are taking each diploma course in each such school.

Iain Wright: We do not have a central record of which maintained mainstream schools are offering the diploma in 2008/09. Consortia (and hence their member providers) are approved through the diploma gateway process to deliver diplomas. We collect information about members of consortia at the time of their applications. Once approved, it is up to consortia and local authorities to manage delivery plans and offer the entitlement.
	There are no independent schools offering diplomas in 2008/09.
	Around 12,000 young people enrolled on a diploma course last autumn. We collect a breakdown of this figure at a local authority level, but not at institutional level.

Schools: Standards

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils' results were exempted from appearing in school league tables in each of the last 10 years.

Vernon Coaker: No pupils' results are excluded completely from the Achievement and Attainment Tables. Since 2000, individual schools have been able to request that results of non-English speaking pupils who have recently arrived from overseas are not reported in their school's published performance data. However, these pupils' results continue to be included in local authority and national level figures published in the tables.
	The table shows the number of pupils' results removed from the school level data in the Achievement and Attainment Tables since 2000.
	
		
			   Key Stage 2  Key Stage 3  Key Stage 4 
			 2000 1,277 * 1,598 
			 2001 1,642 * 1,980 
			 2002 1,702 * 2,149 
			 2003 1,847 * 2,502 
			 2004 1,800 684 2,418 
			 2005 2,152 818 1,898 
			 2006 2,433 1,155 2,115 
			 2007 2,674 1,418 2,451 
			 2008 2,366 n/a 2,699 
		
	
	From 2000-03 Key Stage 3 results were included as part of the Key Stage 4 Tables. Therefore the number of pupils' results exempted is combined.
	There are no Key Stage 3 Achievement and Attainment Tables for 2008.

Schools: Standards

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many schools were rated unsatisfactory in both of their last two Ofsted inspections;
	(2)  how many schools were rated unsatisfactory in both of their last two Ofsted inspections;
	(3)  how many schools rated unsatisfactory in their most recent Ofsted inspection had been rated satisfactory in the preceding inspection.

Vernon Coaker: These are matters for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and copies of her replies have been placed in the Library.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 20 July 2009:
	 Parliamentary question number s 287245 and 287247 : To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many schools were rated unsatisfactory in both of their last two Ofsted inspections
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	The 'inadequate' inspection outcome was introduced in September 2005 as part of a four-point scale: outstanding, good, satisfactory, inadequate. Before September 2005, judgements were made on a seven-point scale and under a different inspection framework. For this reason, only schools which have been inspected more than once under the current inspection arrangements, including pilot inspections carried out during the academic year 2004/05, have been included in this analysis.
	Table A shows that, as of 3 April 2009, 53 schools were rated inadequate in both their last two Ofsted inspections under the current inspection framework (commonly known as section 5).
	
		
			  Table A: Schools inspected more than once under the current inspection framework and judged inadequate at both of their last two inspections, up to 3 April 2009 
			Number of schools 
			School phase  
			  Latest overall effectiveness grade  Previous overall effectiveness grade  Nursery  Primary  Secondary  Special  Pupil Referral Unit  All schools 
			 Inadequate Inadequate 0 24 23 3 3 53 
		
	
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Vernon Coaker MP, Minister of State for Schools and Learners, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 20 July 2009:
	 Parliamentary question number 287246: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many schools rated unsatisfactory in their most recent Ofsted inspection had been rated satisfactory in the preceding inspection.
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	The 'inadequate' inspection outcome was introduced in September 2005 as part of a four-point scale: outstanding, good, satisfactory, inadequate. Before September 2005, judgements were made on a seven-point scale and under a different inspection framework. Therefore, only schools which have been inspected more than once under the current inspection arrangements, including pilot inspections carried out during the academic year 2004/05, have been included in this analysis.
	Table A shows that, as of 3 April 2009, 83 schools were rated inadequate in their last inspection and satisfactory at their previous inspection under the current inspection framework (commonly known as section 5).
	
		
			  Table A: Schools inspected more than once under the current inspection framework and judged inadequate at their last inspection, and satisfactory at their previous inspection, up to 3 April 2009 
			Number of schools 
			School phase  
			  Latest overall effectiveness grade  Previous overall effectiveness grade  Nursery  Primary  Secondary  Special  Pupil Referral Unit  All schools 
			 Inadequate Satisfactory 0 42 39 0 2 83 
		
	
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Vernon Coaker MP, Minister of State for Schools and Learners, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.

Schools: Taxis

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much each local authority spent on taxis to transport children to and from school under each category for which a taxi was required in each of the last five years.

Diana Johnson: The Department does not collect information on local authority expenditure on taxis for home to school transport.

Schools: Teaching Methods

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to page 35 of his Department's publication, Your child, your schools, our future, on the Pupil Guarantee, how many secondary schools use such a personal tutor system.

Diana Johnson: Every secondary school pupil and their families will have access to a named Personal Tutor from September 2010. Officials in this Department and the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) are currently working to support local authorities and schools to enable them to meet that commitment. We know from this work with schools that many already have similar systems in place. However, we do not collect the information from schools that would enable us to say how many currently have a similar system in place.

Schools: Teaching Methods

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to paragraph 2.22, page 31 of his Department's publication, Your child, your schools, our future, what additional funding will be allocated in support of the guarantee of one-to-one catch-up tuition in English and mathematics.

Diana Johnson: Funding for the one-to-one tuition programme was announced as part of the most recent comprehensive spending review (CSR) settlement. There is a total of £468 million funding over the CSR period: £15 million to support 36,000 children in year 5 and year 6 in 2008/09; £138 million to support 3.5 per cent. of the Key Stage 2, Key Stage 3 (and in National Challenge schools Key Stage 4) cohort in each of English and maths in 2009/10; and £315 million to support 300,000 pupils in English and 300,000 children in mathematics in 2010/11. The funding is sufficient to support the guarantee of one-to-one tuition in English and mathematics for pupils falling behind in Key Stage 2 from September 2010. This funding is also sufficient to cover the one-to-one element of the guarantee for catch-up support for pupils who enter Year 7 behind expectations.

Schools: Vetting

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many people have been added to List 99  (a) in each of the last five years and  (b) by the Independent Safeguarding Authority since January 2009.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on List 99 numbers has been reported to the House by successive Secretaries of State since 2006. This is set out as follows.
	In her statement of 19 January 2006 the then Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Bolton, West (Ruth Kelly), reported that 4,045 people were on List 99. This included 513 people who had been added to List 99 in 2005.
	In his statement of 28 February 2007 the then Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull, West and Hessle (Alan Johnson), reported that there were a total of 4,921 individuals on List 99.
	The present Secretary of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Normanton (Ed Balls), reported in his statement of 17 March 2008 that the total number of individuals on List 99 was 8,036. He made a statement on 20 January 2009 in which he reported that the total number on List 99 was 12,992.
	In response to  (b), since 20 January 2009, the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) received new powers to place individuals on the Children's List maintained under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. For the time being, this has equivalent effect to inclusion on List 99 or the PoCA list. The ISA has confirmed that 2,100 individuals have been added to the Children's List since that date.

Science: Education

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will regularly review the effects on levels of attainment in science subjects by children at secondary level of the replacement of science as a core subject in primary schools if the proposal of the Rose Review on that matter is implemented; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: We regularly review levels of science attainment at secondary level, and the factors which impact upon it. In future, this will include changes to the primary science curriculum and assessment arrangements.
	These changes have been widely supported by the science education community. They will provide a basis for schools and teachers to improve the quality of the science education experience in primary schools, reflecting more closely the practical and investigative nature of the subject, making it more enjoyable for pupils, and so encouraging more of them to pursue it at higher levels.

Science: GCSE

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many schools in  (a) the maintained mainstream sector and  (b) the independent sector had one or more students achieve a double award science GCSE in each year since 2005.

Vernon Coaker: The figures available are given in the table:
	
		
			  Number of schools in which one or more students achieved a Double Award Science GCSE between 2005 and 2007 
			   Maintained mainstream  Independent 
			 2005 3,017 630 
			 2006 2,992 637 
			 2007 2,996 654 
			 2008 116 9 
			  Source: Attainment and Achievement Tables. 
		
	
	Figures relate to pupils at the end of Key Stage 4.
	Accreditation of Double Award Science expired in 2008.

Secondary Education: Admissions

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which local authorities  (a) have been selected and  (b) are under consideration for participation in the trial of the new requirement in relation to parents' views on secondary school places, as referred to in paragraph 5.39 of the Building a 21st Century Schools System White Paper; and what criteria his Department uses to select local authorities to participate in such trials.

Diana Johnson: The Department has not yet selected local authorities to participate in the trial to seek parents' views on secondary school places. We intend to approach authorities with a mixture of the following characteristics: urban and rural (from different regions of England); mixed socio-economic circumstances; and with a different mix of provision, such as single sex, or selective schools.

Secondary Education: Sports

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many hours were spent on sport by secondary school pupils on average in  (a) maintained mainstream schools and  (b) independent schools in the latest period for which figures are available.

Diana Johnson: The annual school sport survey collects data from maintained schools in England relating to the percentage of pupils participating in at least two hours high quality PE and school sport a week. The 2007/08 survey found that 83 per cent. of all secondary pupils took part in at least two hours high quality PE and sport each week. The survey does not collect comparable data from independent schools.

Sixth Form Education: Lancaster

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which schools in Lancaster and Wyre constituency received less funding for sixth form places in the final yearly allocations for 2009-10 than was indicated in the provisional figures.

Iain Wright: Following the further increase of £655 million in the Budget 2009, the LSC have now issued revised letters of allocation to all schools, colleges and independent training providers. This means we have now reinstated the original allocations as at March 2009 where schools, colleges and training providers indicated they would deliver an additional 34,500 places for young people aged 16-18. But the Budget allocation has enabled Ministers to approve a revised set of allocations that will mean a further increase of 22,500 places will be made available this September.
	We are not able to provide a breakdown of the information based on a constituency basis; however the allocation for schools in the Lancashire area, which includes Lancaster and Wyre, is £23,088,202.

Social Services: Complaints

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many complaints were made against children's social services departments in each local authority area in the latest period for which figures are available.

Dawn Primarolo: This information is not collected centrally. However, local authorities are required to keep a record of each representation or complaint received; the decisions made in response and any action to be taken; and whether there was compliance with the time limits. The local authority must produce an annual report drawing on this information.

Special Educational Needs: Sight Impaired

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent progress he has made in increasing the availability of textbooks to blind and partially-sighted children.

Diana Johnson: We recently signed a contract agreement with a commercial provider to deliver an innovative pilot project over two years (2009-11) to develop curriculum materials in alternative formats for visually impaired/dyslexic children. The preparatory work is being undertaken at the moment and we will be making a formal announcement releasing more details shortly.

Specialised Diplomas

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many 14 to 19 providers formerly part of a diploma consortium have informed his Department that they will no longer be offering diploma lines from September 2009; and if he will make a statement.

Iain Wright: We do not collect this information centrally. Consortia (and hence their member providers) are approved through the Diploma Gateway process to deliver diplomas.
	We collect information about members of consortia at the time of their applications. Once approved, it is up to consortia and local authorities to manage delivery plans and offer the entitlement.
	Consortia in 142 local authorities are approved to deliver from September 2009, an increase compared to the 101 local authorities that had consortia approved to deliver in September 2008.
	There are 305 consortia approved to deliver diplomas from September 2009, up from 146 consortia in 2008.

Specialised Diplomas: Disadvantaged

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of pupils enrolled on each diploma course are entitled to free school meals; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: We do not have comprehensive analysis of these figures because data are based upon the information entered into the Diploma Aggregation Service and use a 'snapshot' of participation from the 18 April 2009. This does not include every diploma learner as some learners will not be registered on the system until the 2009/10 academic year, when they are due to claim their diploma. Eligibility for free school meals is based on school census data.

Specialist Teachers

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many specialist history teachers there were in mainstream maintained secondary schools in each of the last 10 years;
	(2)  how many specialist physical education teachers there were in mainstream maintained schools in each of the last 10 years.

Vernon Coaker: Information on the number of specialist subject teachers is only available for maintained secondary schools. It is derived from the Secondary School Curriculum and Staffing Survey, (SSCSS), a sample survey last completed in 2007. The survey revealed that of the estimated 15,700 full-time equivalent (FTE) history and 21,700 physical education teachers, who taught at least one period per week in these subjects, some 76 and 83 per cent. respectively held a relevant post A level qualification.
	Further information regarding the SSCSS is available from the survey report which is available at the following URL:
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/research/data/uploadfiles/DCSF-RR026.pdf

Sure Start Programme: Hemsworth

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) children and  (b) families in Hemsworth constituency have received support from his Department's Sure Start programme since the programme's inception.

Dawn Primarolo: The Department does not collect information centrally about the numbers of children and families accessing individual Sure Start Children's Centres. We expect local authorities and children's centres to collect data on the take up of services as part of their local performance management arrangements. Hemsworth currently has four Sure Start Children's Centres offering access to services to around 3,070 children under five and their families.

Teachers

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what support his Department provides to teachers to assist them in educating students in issues related to  (a) international poverty,  (b) sustainable development and  (c) cultural diversity;
	(2)  if he will take steps to ensure that schools educate pupils on  (a) global learning,  (b) community cohesion and  (c) international development; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: The Geography, Science, Citizenship and History programmes of study within the new secondary curriculum provide opportunities for teachers to educate their pupils in issues related to international poverty, sustainable development, and cultural diversity. The secondary curriculum allows teachers the flexibility to personalise their offer to meet individual needs and engage all of their learners.
	Support for implementing the new curriculum is provided through the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency's secondary curriculum website. This website offers guidance, resources and case studies to support teachers planning cross-curriculum dimensions, including Global dimension and sustainable development and Identity and cultural diversity.
	Environmental education is one of the key concepts for the study of geography in the new secondary curriculum and the Action Plan for Geography supports this by providing professional development opportunities for teachers in the regions to help them embed sustainable development and environmental education in their classroom practice.
	The Citizenship programmes of study ensure young people develop a historical understanding of issues that have shaped contemporary life in the UK and the values we share, and allow for joint working on issues such as diversity and ethnicity. There are strong links between Citizenship Education and the teaching of history with guidance available to teachers showing how cultural and ethnic diversity can be taught through history.
	The Department has also produced a Community Cohesion Resource Pack on TeacherNet to help schools and head teachers meet their duty to promote community cohesion. It has also developed the School Linking Network which helps schools establish links with other schools so that pupils from different backgrounds can mix and interact.

Teachers

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what percentage of teachers did not satisfactorily complete their induction year in the latest period for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: The General Teaching Council for England (GTCE) received notification of 24 newly qualified teachers (0.1 per cent.) who failed their induction in 2008 calendar year.

Teachers

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many teachers have been suspended for each reason in each of the last 10 years;
	(2)  how many teachers have been dismissed in each of the last 10 years.

Vernon Coaker: The operation of disciplinary procedures in schools, including those that result in suspension, is a matter for local determination. Accordingly the information requested about the suspension and any subsequent dismissals of teachers is not held centrally.

Teachers: Pay

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what the average salary of  (a) primary and  (b) secondary school classroom teachers was in the last year for which figures are available;
	(2)  what the average salary of  (a) primary and  (b) secondary school headteachers was in the last year for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: The following table shows the average salary of classroom grade and head teachers in service in local authority maintained nursery/primary and secondary schools in England, March 2008.
	
		
			  Average salary of classroom grade and head teachers in local authority maintained nursery/primary and secondary schools. Year: March 2008. Coverage: England 
			   Classroom grade( 1)  Head teacher 
			 Nursery/primary 31,000 52,300 
			 Secondary 34,300 73,000 
			 (1) Includes main classroom, upper and advanced skills teachers.  Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest £100.  Source: Database of Teacher Records

Teachers: Pensions

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many teachers have had their annual pension payments reduced as a result of over-estimates of the guaranteed minimum pension in  (a) Test Valley borough and  (b) Southampton; and by how much the total paid out in pension payments to such teachers will be reduced.

Vernon Coaker: The detailed information is not readily available within a geographic split. Specific details regarding the Guaranteed Minimum Pension overpayment are quoted within the National Audit Office Report Review of Errors in Guaranteed Minimum Pension Payments published on 16 July and available in the House Libraries.

Teachers: Recruitment

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much was paid in golden hellos by the Training and Development Agency for Schools in the last year for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: In 2008-09 the Training and Development Agency for Schools paid £28 million in respect of reimbursements for golden hello payments made to teachers by schools or local authorities.

Teachers: Training

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the amount of the tax-free training bursary for people training to be teachers of mathematics will be in  (a) 2009-10 and  (b) 2010-11.

Vernon Coaker: The information is as follows.
	 (a) New entrants to secondary mathematics Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) initial teacher training (ITT) courses commencing on or after 1 August 2009 and on or before 31 July 2010 will receive a training bursary of up to £9,000 payable by monthly instalments over the period of their initial teacher training course.
	 (b) The applicable training bursary rate for new entrants to secondary mathematics PGCE courses starting during the academic year 2010/11 will be announced during September 2009 at the start of the 2010/11 ITT recruitment cycle.

Teachers: Training

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average annual salary for people begining the Graduate Teacher Programme was in the latest year for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: In the interests of reducing burdens on schools, information on graduate teacher pay is not collected centrally.
	It is a condition of the Graduate Teacher Programme that trainees must be paid at least the minimum of the unqualified teacher pay scale. This equates to £15,113 (excluding the London area) and £19,007 in inner London (2008/09).
	Once the trainees obtain qualified teacher status they are paid on the main scale for classroom teachers, starting from a minimum of £20,627 (excluding the London area) and £25,000 in inner London (2008/09).

Teachers: Training

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps have been taken by the Government with the objective of improving the quality of teaching training since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: For more than a decade we have worked with the Teacher Training Agency, now the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA), and training providers to secure the continuous quality improvement of Initial Teacher Training (ITT).
	The standards for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) were revised in 1998, 2002 and 2007 setting out progressively more demanding expectations of beginner teachers. Statutory requirements apply to all accredited providers of ITT to ensure training is designed to make sure new teachers have met all of the standards. The TDA uses quality categories derived from Ofsted inspections when allocating ITT places and funding to higher education institutions and school-based providers.
	In the 10 years that this allocation approach has been used in full, the percentage of undergraduate and Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) ITT places allocated to high quality ITT providers has increased from 68 to 96 per cent. This approach has helped secure positive results from the TDA's annual survey of newly qualified teachers. Currently 85 per cent. of primary newly qualified teachers and 86 per cent. of secondary newly qualified teachers rate their training as good or very good.
	The outcomes of the first full inspections by Ofsted of the Graduate Teacher Programme will be available in the autumn of 2009 which will assess quality of training through that route. Since 2003 Teach First has brought into teaching many high quality graduates who would otherwise not have considered the profession. Ofsted said that some of their trainees were the best it had ever seen. Currently around half of teachers trained on this route remain in the profession at the end of their induction year.
	The agency's special educational needs (SEN) and disability programme of work has been developed within the context of the Government's long-term strategy: Removing Barriers to Achievement (2004), the Children's Plan (December 2007) and other evidence. Resources have been put in place to ensure that all trainees are well-prepared to teach children and young people with SEN and disabilities.
	Since 2000 the agency has invested nearly £20 million of its funding from the Department to support Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in initial teacher training alongside the Government's investment in ICT in schools. The aim is to ensure that all NQTs have strong skills in using ICT to support teaching and learning.
	TDA have worked with schools and ITT providers to ensure that ITT is up-to-date, responds rapidly to changes in the schools' curriculum, that ITT partnerships are secure and that every trainee has effective school based training.
	The SEN modules on dyslexia, autism and other frequently encountered special needs that were developed for primary ITT, were launched in June 2008 and have been well-received. Similar modules for secondary training were launched on 25 June 2009. PGCE materials are due to be launched later in 2009.
	Evaluation shows that the great majority of trainee teachers have access to a personal laptop and have opportunities to use ICT to support teaching and learning while on school experience. Research indicates that trainees and ITT providers have integrated the effective use of ICT in practice.
	The Teacher Training Resource Bank (www.ttrb.ac.uk) provides access to up-to-date materials and relevant research to support ITT. Over 5,000 articles are viewed daily and the site has 18,000 registered users. Evaluation shows that the resources support quality improvement by giving trainers access to key materials cost-effectively.
	In 1997 there were approximately 27,000 trainees requiring schools experience as part of their ITT programme. Currently the figure is approximately 38,000. Ofsted indicates that this expansion has been achieved effectively.
	DCSF and TDA monitor and support training providers to implement the approach to the teaching of early reading recommended by Sir Jim Rose based on the teaching of phonics.
	TDA has a range of programmes t o improve the recruitment of mathematics and science teachers by means of a targeted campaign. The target for the training of primary teachers of modern languages with 900 new teachers having an enhanced experience in teaching French, German or Spanish in 2008/09 has been met.
	The TDA have boosted the numbers of trainees who report having had a 'very good' or 'good' grounding in phonics from 35 per cent. in 2006 to 49 per cent. in the 2008 cohort. TDA have ambitious targets for further progress.
	The diversity of routes to teaching and programmes such as Transition to Teaching has boosted the supply of new science and maths teachers. The agency works to help provide additional training both pre-service and in-service to develop the subject knowledge of specialist teachers in science and mathematics.

Teachers: Training

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many teachers entered the profession via the Graduate Teacher Programme in the latest year for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many new primary school teachers had B.Ed degrees in the latest year for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: In 2006/07, 5,140 trainees gained qualified teacher status (QTS) through the graduate teacher programme. There were 5,090 trainees who gained BA or BSc with QTS or BEd via a primary initial teacher training course.

Teachers: Training

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much money has been spent on developing the Masters course in teaching and learning.

Vernon Coaker: Since the Masters in Teaching and Learning was announced by the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families in March 2008, £1,482,070 has been spent on developing the programme. A further £3,250,123, split between the Training and Development Agency for Schools and MTL providers (schools and higher education institutions), is budgeted for the development of the programme between now and its launch in April 2010.

Teachers: Training

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many students are registered to begin the Masters course in teaching and learning in the next academic year.

Vernon Coaker: The latest figures available show that as of 17 July 2009, 2,893 trainee teachers had expressed an interest in the Masters in Teaching and Learning (MTL) via the TDA's website, of which 1,871 intend to teach in an eligible school and enrol for MTL in 2009/10. Eligible newly qualified teachers will be able to enrol with their MTL provider in January 2010, to commence MTL from the summer term 2010.

Teaching Methods

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of classes in  (a) primary and  (b) secondary schools were set by ability at the most recent date for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply has been placed in the House Libraries.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 16 July 2009:
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	Table A shows the data Ofsted holds on the use of setting, streaming or banding in lessons observed during inspections carried out in the academic year 2007/08. Inspectors record whether classes are in sets, streamed or banded (as one category), mixed ability or grouped by criteria other than ability.
	
		
			  Table A: All lessons observed during Ofsted inspections 2007/08, by lesson grouping 
			   Percentage of lessons observed 
			  School phase  Mixed ability  Setted, streamed or banded  Other 
			 Primary schools (including middle deemed primary) 85 14 2 
			 Secondary schools (including middle deemed secondary, academies and city technology colleges) 54 45 1 
			  Note: These figures include all lessons, not just national curriculum subjects, in years 1 to 6 (primary) and 7 to 11 (secondary). 
		
	
	Please note that these data do not enable us to estimate how many classes in England are set by ability. Since the introduction of the current school inspection framework in September 2005 (commonly known as section 5), the recording of how lessons are organised has been based on discussions with the headteacher or teacher during the inspection, or by reference to the lesson plan at the time of observation. A much smaller number of lessons are observed than would have been seen under the previous inspection framework. Lessons seen may not, therefore, represent the way pupils are grouped in the school as a whole.
	For clarity, setting is the term used to describe the organisation of pupils in classes on the basis of their prior attainment in the particular subject being taught. The term banding, which is similar to streaming, is used when the decision as to which pupils are included in a class is based on the prior attainment in a range of subjects. Ofsted does not currently differentiate between setting, streaming and banding in the data collected during lesson observations.
	It is of some concern to me that we do not have ready access to a comprehensive data set about pupil groupings. As a consequence, from September, headteachers have been asked to record the detail of the pupil groupings in use in their schools in their Self-Evaluation Forms.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Vernon Coaker MP, Minister of State for Schools and Learners, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.

Young People: Connexions Service

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of 13 to 19 year olds received one-to-one careers guidance from a Connexions adviser in each local authority in each of the last five years.

Iain Wright: The information is not available in the form requested.

Young people: Unemployment

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 9 July 2009,  Official Report, column 1018W, on young people: unemployed, how many and what proportion of people aged 16 to 24 years old were not in education, employment or training in each region in the second quarter of 2009.

Iain Wright: Quarterly estimates of the number of people aged 16-24 who were not in education, employment or training are produced from the labour force survey (LFS). The LFS data relating to the second quarter of 2009 are not available until 12 August 2009.

Youth Services: Greater London

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what  (a) capital and  (b) other expenditure from the public purse per 1,000 of the population between 11 and 18 years old was in respect of youth services in real terms in each London local authority in (i) 1997 and (ii) 2008.

Dawn Primarolo: The Government do not set a budget for spending on youth services. Local authorities receive funding from Government through the revenue support grant for youth services and it is for them to decide how much funding should be spent based on Government priorities and local needs. Information on local authority capital expenditure on youth facilities is not collected by the Department.
	Since 2006, the Department has provided capital funding to local areas through the Youth Capital Fund and from 2008, the 'myplace' initiative.
	The following table sets out expenditure in respect of youth services for each London local authority from 2001-09 and funds allocated in respect of the Youth Capital Fund and 'myplace' initiative for 2008-09. The Department does not hold information as far back as 1997.
	
		
			  The Education (Budget Statements) (England) Regulations, budgeted net expenditure by local authorities in England on youth services( 1) : 2000-01 to 2008-09( 2, 3) , real terms figures( 3)  as reported by local authorities as at 16 July 2009 
			  £ 
			Budgeted net expenditure on youth services( 1, 2, 3) 
			  LA no.  LA name  2000-01  2001-02( 2)  2002-03( 2)  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 201 City of London 343,464 163,174 147,598 160,874 189,016 250,541 269,598 311,574 247,700 
			 202 Camden 2,713,113 2,777,364 2,752,066 2,605,799 2,573,320 2,667,087 2,762,048 2,651,919 3,965,941 
			 203 Greenwich 3,073,628 3,120,302 3,196,499 3,444,560 3,518,219 3,673,243 3,565,777 3,249,075 4,000,039 
			 204 Hackney 1,481,979 0 0 1,218,759 1,287,989 1,625,160 2,576,962 2,864,097 2,834,026 
			 205 Hammersmith and Fulham 918,938 1,326,211 1,021,692 1,336,721 1,338,005 1,423,898 1,432,163 1,436,267 1,447,462 
			 206 Islington 7,350,124 6,679,333 7,230,320 3,577,437 3,689,476 3,568,988 2,820,935 2,450,530 2,955,890 
			 207 Kensington and Chelsea 4,823,487 4,331,200 4,402,932 4,186,913 2,169,536 2,081,153 2,546,862 3,142,053 3,489,130 
			 208 Lambeth 2,324,256 6,673,567 3,713,284 4,077,371 2,091,816 1,947,302 1,993,425 2,237,457 2,655,278 
			 209 Lewisham 3,336,647 3,508,472 3,184,081 3,362,278 3,620,286 3,763,667 3,778,997 3,580,390 3,766,323 
			 210 Southwark 3,467,803 3,476,161 3,554,935 3,783,205 4,596,661 4,037,539 3,863,074 4,042,904 3,575,586 
			 211 Tower Hamlets 5,153,428 5,271,296 5,621,924 5,450,829 4,583,635 4,947,740 4,790,167 4,757,733 4,825,619 
			 212 Wandsworth 0 3,578,619 3,678,776 3,632,492 3,649,693 3,186,246 3,254,117 3,346,001 3,287,338 
			 213 Westminster 2,123,707 2,127,271 2,329,791 2,198,460 2,490,913 2,796,388 2,929,445 2,559,116 3,073,895 
			 301 Barking and Dagenham 1,186,645 1,079,532 1,061,251 1,220,695 1,300,498 1,278,397 1,304,492 1,400,037 1,285,298 
			 302 Barnet 2,777,857 2,197,757 2,680,121 2,035,109 1,680,635 1,364,147 1,437,453 1,517,521 1,745,380 
			 303 Bexley 1,935,975 1,958,570 2,209,315 2,200,838 2,350,583 2,387,543 2,175,055 2,005,968 2,002,000 
			 304 Brent 2,684,077 2,496,876 2,543,389 1,852,145 2,164,431 2,371,324 2,624,559 2,703,918 2,689,000 
			 305 Bromley 1,381,934 1,345,682 1,249,464 1,257,600 1,269,690 1,274,865 1,465,806 1,478,776 1,610,782 
			 306 Croydon 3,090,196 3,133,357 3,984,922 4,049,418 2,901,942 3,086,461 4,116,259 3,659,509 3,827,756 
			 307 Ealing 1,879,100 1,863,645 1,763,028 1,866,636 1,812,945 1,831,747 1,740,674 1,909,161 2,034,817 
			 308 Enfield 1,211,346 1,264,459 1,305,622 1,534,453 1,586,325 1,641,583 1,731,394 2,067,894 2,356,094 
			 309 Haringey 1,843,500 2,278,670 2,289,957 2,373,737 2,158,593 2,220,812 2,301,249 1,900,549 1,936,960 
			 310 Harrow 945,419 1,195,620 911,880 1,003,515 1,283,496 1,808,846 1,777,392 1,548,194 1,567,760 
			 311 Havering 1,632,773 1,505,391 1,550,874 2,031,892 2,043,360 2,132,731 1,977,598 2,016,871 4,612,120 
			 312 Hillingdon 1,777,477 1,770,166 2,068,481 2,414,678 2,515,969 3,322,512 3,284,588 2,048,959 2,253,644 
			 313 Hounslow 905,953 923,532 965,189 928,156 960,476 1,434,120 1,382,826 1,347,263 2,107,125 
			 314 Kingston upon Thames 935,383 1,174,366 1,166,076 1,233,981 1,348,176 1,304,017 1,317,049 1,352,668 1,434,626 
			 315 Merton 678,423 691,782 705,083 913,427 891,129 915,904 1,098,527 1,214,509 1,299,420 
			 316 Newham 1,486,220 1,666,259 1,776,509 3,605,910 3,707,385 3,581,707 3,560,941 3,540,934 5,932,663 
			 317 Redbridge 1,990,481 2,126,689 2,351,850 2,268,553 2,098,835 2,131,846 2,136,141 2,242,884 2,323,512 
			 318 Richmond upon Thames 922,782 776,819 807,599 791,011 811,469 1,027,790 1,132,163 1,437,900 1,399,813 
			 319 Sutton 1,706,824 1,844,247 2,010,672 1,466,170 1,463,751 1,452,936 1,440,621 1,309,914 1,363,760 
			 320 Waltham Forest 2,574,350 3,499,808 2,402,351 2,213,314 2,373,009 2,521,670 2,427,953 2,381,205 2,515,168 
			  Total 70,657,291 77,826,194 76,637,529 76,296,935 72,521,261 75,059,909 77,016,308 75,713,752 86,421,924 
			  Notes: 1. Youth service includes the following items of planned expenditure on the Youth Service and youth work: Employees Staff Training Premises-related expenditure Transport-related expenditure Supplies and services Third-party payments Support services Youth work costs at residential and non-residential youth centres Youth work costs at activity at outdoor and urban studies centres Grant funding to the voluntary sector for youth work. 2. The 2001-02 and 2002-03 figures also include any local authority youth service provision that contributed to the delivery of the Connexions Service plus any Connexions Service specific funding. 3. Cash figures are converted to 2008-09 prices using the 30 June 2009 gross domestic product (GDP) deflators.  Source: Figures are drawn from local authorities Section 52 Budget Statement (Table 1) submitted to the DCSF (formally DfES). 
		
	
	
		
			  Youth capital fund and youth capital fund plus, 2008-09 
			  GO region  LA name  YCF 2008-09 allocation  YCF plus 2008-09 allocation  Total 
			 London Tower Hamlets 183,600 452,000 635,600 
			 London Hackney 139,200 452,000 591,200 
			 London Islington 118,000 452,000 570,000 
			 London Newham 173,700 452,000 625,700 
			 London Southwark 191,900 452,000 643,900 
			 London Haringey 160,300 452,000 612,300 
			 London Camden 111,700 452,000 563,700 
			 London Barking and Dagenham 109,400 452,000 561,400 
			 London Lambeth 142,400 452,000 594,400 
			 London Westminster 135,900 0 135,900 
			 London Greenwich 180,400 452,000 632,400 
			 London Lewisham 171,000 452,000 623,000 
			 London Waltham Forest 149,500 452,000 601,500 
			 London City of London 50,000 0 50,000 
			 London Hammersmith and Fulham 87,700 0 87,700 
			 London Kensington and Chelsea 113,500 0 113,500 
			 London Brent 154,100 0 154,100 
			 London Enfield 169,300 0 169,300 
			 London Ealing 152,500 0 152,500 
			 London Croydon 179,700 0 179,700 
			 London Hounslow 126,000 0 126,000 
			 London Wandsworth 126,600 0 126,600 
			 London Bexley 114,900 0 114,900 
			 London Bromley 144,100 0 144,100 
			 London Barnet 172,600 0 172,600 
			 London Sutton 98,900 0 98,900 
			 London Hillingdon 166,800 0 166,800 
			 London Havering 106,200 0 106,200 
			 London Redbridge 114,500 0 114,500 
			 London Merton 98,900 0 98,900 
			 London Harrow 100,000 0 100,000 
			 London Kingston upon Thames 72,200 0 72,200 
			 London Richmond upon Thames 78,600 0 78,600 
			 Total London  4,394,100 5,424,000 9,818,100 
		
	
	
		
			  myplace initiative, 2008-09 
			  GO region  Project name  Lead organisation  Grant allocation 2008-09  Total 
			 London Sutton Life Centre LB of Sutton 4,074,688 4,074,688 
			 London New Horizon Youth Centre Third Sector 1,500,000 1,500,000 
			 London Trinity at Bowes Centre Plus Third Sector 2,168,228 2,168,228 
			 London Slamon Youth Centre Phase 2 Third Sector 1,118,679 1,118,679 
			 Total London8,861,595

HOME DEPARTMENT

Health and Safety Executive: Publications

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library a copy of the last inspection report of the Health and Safety Executive by  (a) the Office of the Surveillance Commissioner and  (b) the Interception of Communications Commissioner.

David Hanson: The oversight commissioners are independent of Government and it is a matter for them and the individual public authority concerned to decide whether it is appropriate for inspection reports to be made more widely available.

Identity and Passport Service

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much the Identity and Passport Service and its predecessors have cost the public purse in each of the last 12 years; and how many passports were issued in each such year.

Phil Woolas: In delivery of passport services to the public, passport fees are set to recover the costs of the service provided as agreed with HM Treasury. In recent years there has been public funding required to set up the national identity service which is not recovered by fee income.
	The number of passports issued in the last 12 years is as below:
	
		
			  Financial year  Passports issued 
			 1997-98 4,527,865 
			 1998-99 4,681,885 
			 1999-2000 5,393,403 
			 2000-01 5,509,704 
			 2001-02 5,588,550 
			 2002-03 5,354,348 
			 2003-04 5,723,473 
			 2004-05 6,031,325 
			 2005-06 6,453,095 
			 2006-07 6,212,339 
			 2007-08 5,683,445 
			 2008-09 5,225,115

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) males and  (b) females in each court service area aged (i) between 10 and 12 years, (ii) between 13 and 16 years, (iii) between 17 to 18 years, (iv) between 19 and 24 years and (v) over 24 years old were (A) proceeded against, (B) found guilty and (C) sentenced to immediate custody for alcohol-related offences in each year since 1997.

Alan Johnson: Data showing the number of persons proceeded against at the magistrates courts, found guilty at all courts and sentenced to immediate custody for alcohol related offences, England and Wales 1997 to 2007 (latest available) are shown in the following table.
	Data for 2008 will be available in autumn 2009.
	
		
			  The number of males and females proceeded against at magistrates courts, found guilty at all courts and sentenced to immediate custody for alcohol related offences( 1) , by age group England and Wales( 2,3) 
			  Male 
			   10-12  13-16  17-18 
			   Proceeded against  Found guilty  Immediate custody  Proceeded against  Found guilty  Immediate custody  Proceeded against  Found guilty  Immediate custody 
			 1997 4 2 - 991 813 7 6,207 5,204 65 
			 1998 11 10 - 998 813 7 6,357 5,428 79 
			 1999 9 9 - 1,168 986 9 6,038 5,223 66 
			 2000 8 5 - 1,299 1,086 13 6,022 5,247 90 
			 2001 7 7 - 1,412 1,102 20 6,408 5,435 86 
			 2002 11 9 - 1,372 1.119 18 6,322 5,454 85 
			 2003 8 7 - 1,416 1,178 15 6,502 5,648 59 
			 2004 8 7 - 1,320 1,122 17 5,559 5,037 69 
			 2005 8 6 - 1,114 973 12 4,561 4,198 40 
			 2006 6 6 - 1,078 939 2 4,475 4,150 42 
			 2007 1 - - 1,210 1,062 5 4,403 4,099 44 
		
	
	
		
			  Male 
			   19-24  25 and over  Total 
			 1997 27,002 23,023 588 87,041 78,542 3,354 121,245 108,544 4,014 
			 1998 26,052 23,183 584 83,117 74,644 3,041 116,535 104,078 3,711 
			 1999 24,756 22,218 568 77,113 69,707 2.95C 109,084 98,143 3,593 
			 2000 24,534 21,903 617 72,923 65,413 2,694 104,786 93,654 3,414 
			 2001 25,301 22,477 625 70,832 63,198 2,689 103,960 92,219 3,420 
			 2002 26,830 23,988 624 74,047 66,365 2,546 108,582 96,935 3,273 
			 2003 27,673 24,986 586 75,395 67,679 2,350 110,994 99,498 3,010 
			 2004 24.817 22,967 557 72,905 66,676 2,275 104,609 95,809 2,918 
			 2005 22,384 21,074 455 68,125 62.790 2,205 96,192 89,041 2,712 
			 2006 22,173 20,873 405 66,898 61,986 1,794 94,630 87,954 2,247 
			 2007 21,326 20,334 382 64,992 60,659 1,561 91,932 86,154 1,992 
		
	
	
		
			  Female 
			   10-12  13-15  17-18 
			 1997 - - - 138 104 - 427 345 1 
			 1998 - - - 157 114 - 541 441 1 
			 1999 4 2 - 171 143 - 504 425 - 
			 2000 2 2 - 245 194 - 466 379 - 
			 2001 6 5 - 247 180 - 499 412 - 
			 2002 3 2 - 241 177 - 534 446 - 
			 2003 - - - 287 233 - 675 563 - 
			 2004 1 1 - 330 268 - 560 495 - 
			 2005 - - - 313 265 - 590 529 - 
			 2006 1 - - 311 268 - 626 564 - 
			 2007 1 - - 433 382 - 695 625 1 
		
	
	
		
			  Female 
			   19-24  25 and over  Total 
			 1997 2,092 1,846 11 8,839 7,879 110 11,496 10,174 122 
			 1998 2,040 1,823 10 9,230 8,162 113 11,968 10,540 124 
			 1999 2,031 1.802 13 9,162 8,191 10E 11,872 10,563 122 
			 2000 2,077 1,817 14 9,299 8,295 96 12,089 10,687 110 
			 2001 2,182 1,884 11 9,048 7,998 102 11,982 10,479 113 
			 2002 2,413 2,117 12 10,191 9,076 86 13,382 11,818 98 
			 2003 2,687 2,392 7 10,616 9,494 101 14,265 12,682 108 
			 2004 2,631 2,432 15 10,600 9,629 114 14,122 12,825 129 
			 2005 2,547 2,382 15 10,254 9,459 102 13,704 12.635 117 
			 2006 2.708 2,550 12 10,380 9,604 73 14,026 12,986 85 
			 2007 2,886 2,724 9 10,729 10,005 73 14,744 13,736 83 
			 (1) Includes offences of: (a) Drunkenness simple. (b) Drunkenness with aggravation. (c) Offences by licensed person. (d) Other offences against intoxicating liquor laws. (e) Driving after consuming alcohol or taking drugs. (2) The number proceeded against and number found guilty statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces and the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source:  Evidence and Analysis unit-Office for Criminal Justice Reform [Ref: IOS 364-09]

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many  (a) men and  (b) women aged (i) under 31, (ii) 31 to 40, (iii) 41 to 50, (iv) 51 to 60, (v) 61 to 70 and (vi) over 70 years have been issued with penalty notices for disorder for being drunk and disorderly in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many  (a) men and  (b) women aged (i) 10 to 12, (ii) 13 to 16, (iii) 17 to 18 and (iv) 19 to 30 years old have been issued with penalty notices for disorder for being drunk and disorderly in each of the last five years.

Alan Johnson: Information showing the number of males and females issued with a penalty notice for disorder for being drunk and disorderly in England and Wales, broken down by sex and age group from 2004 to 2007 can be viewed in the following table.
	2008 data will be available in the autumn of 2009.
	
		
			  Number of penalty notices for disorder issued for being drunk and disorderly( 1) , by sex and age group, 2004 to 2007( 2,3) 
			  Sex and age group  2004( 4)  2005  2006  2007 
			  Males 
			 16 299 570 736 703 
			 17-18 2,882 4,442 5,205 5,274 
			 19-30 13,340 18,720 21,613 23,157 
			 16 to 30 16,521 23,732 27,554 29,134 
			 31 -40 4,701 5,856 6,494 6,765 
			 41 -50 2,403 3,117 3,591 3,819 
			 51 -60 861 1,054 1,133 1,092 
			 61 -70 228 265 275 283 
			 71 and over 46 54 40 39 
			 Total 24,760 34,078 39,087 41,132 
			  
			  Females 
			 16 90 167 225 233 
			 17-18 434 737 1,032 1,019 
			 19-30 1,888 2,720 3,169 3,657 
			 16 to 30 2,412 3,624 4,426 4,909 
			 31 -40 1,117 1,383 1,571 1,630 
			 41 -50 604 867 935 1,135 
			 51 -60 173 191 220 216 
			 61 -70 22 30 27 33 
			 71 and over 2 3 2 7 
			 Total 4,330 6,098 7,181 7,930 
			 (1) Data includes the following offence descriptions and corresponding statutes: Being found drunk in a highway or other public place, whether a building or not, or on licensed premises-Licensing Act 1872, section 12; Being guilty while drunk of disorderly behaviour-Criminal Justice Act 1967, section 91. (2) The penalty notice for disorder (PND) scheme was implemented in all 43 police forces in England and Wales in 2004 under the provisions of the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001. Under the scheme, the police are able to issue penalty notices (£50 or £80) to those aged 18 and over for a range of minor alcohol-related offences including being drunk in a highway which attracts the lower tariff. The scheme was extended to 16 and 17-year-olds under the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003; the tariffs for young people are £40 and £30. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Figures for 2004 exclude 16 PNDs issued where the gender of the offender was not recorded.  Source: Office for Criminal Justice Reform-Evidence and Analysis Unit

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) males and  (b) females aged (i) 10 to 12, (ii) 12 to 16, (iii) 16 to 18, (iv) 18 to 24 and (v) over 24 years have been issued with (A) a penalty notice for disorder and (B) a caution for alcohol-related offences in each police force area in each year since 1997.

Alan Johnson: Information showing the number of males and females issued with a caution from 1998 to 2007, and the number of males and females issued with a penalty notice for disorder 2004 to 2007 for alcohol related offences can be viewed in the tables placed in the House Library.
	2008 data will be available in the autumn of 2009.

Alcoholic Drinks: Young People

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many successful prosecutions there were for selling alcohol to people under the age of 18 years from  (a) on-licence and  (b) off-licence premises in each police force in the North West in each of the last five years.

Alan Campbell: Data showing the number of defendants found guilty at all courts for selling alcohol to persons aged under 18, in each police force area in the north-west region from 2003-07 (latest available) are shown in the following table.
	It is not possible to differentiate between sales on premises and off premises in the court proceedings database.
	Data for 2008 will be available in autumn 2009.
	
		
			  Number of defendants found guilty at all courts for selling alcohol to persons aged under 18( 1) , by police force area in the North West region, 2003-07( 2, 3) 
			  Force  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 Cheshire 5 15 5 6 5 
			 Cumbria - 1 6 1 1 
			 Greater Manchester 87 135 92 112 30 
			 Lancashire 13 15 65 22 21 
			 Merseyside 27 9 11 16 20 
			 Total 132 175 179 157 77 
			 (1) Includes the following offences: (a) Holder of occasional permission or his agent knowingly selling to, knowingly allow consumption by or allowing any person to sell, intoxicating liquor to a person under 18. Selling etc. intoxicating liquor to person under 18 for consumption on the premises. (b) Wholesaler selling intoxicating liquor to a person under 18. (c ) Sale of alcohol to person under 18. (d) Allowing sale of alcohol to person under 18. (e) Persistently selling alcohol to children. (2) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit: Office for Criminal Justice Reform.

Animal Experiments

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he last reviewed his Department's performance in applying its policy of refinement, replacement and reductions in respect of animal experimentation.

Alan Campbell: The Government strongly support and continue to promote the development of refinement, replacement and reduction methods, commonly known as the 3Rs, wherever possible. Indeed the use of animals in scientific procedures will not be licensed if alternative non-animal techniques are available. Application of the 3Rs is kept under continuous review, and progress is reported in a variety of ways, including the Animals Scientific Procedures Inspectorate and Division Annual Report for 2008, published on 21 July 2009, other departmental publications, and presentations to scientific and other meetings.

Antisocial Behaviour: Alcoholic Drinks

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) males and  (b) females aged (i) under 16, (ii) between 16 and 19, (iii) between 20 and 25, (iv) between 26 and 30, (v) between 31 and 40, (vii) between 51 and 60 and (viii) 61 and over have been cautioned, proceeded against or received a penalty notice for disorder for being drunk and disorderly in each police force area in the last 12 months.

Alan Campbell: Information showing the number of males and females cautioned, proceeded against and issued with a penalty notice for disorder for being drunk and disorderly in England and Wales 2007, broken down by age group and police force area, can be viewed in tables l, 2 and 3.
	2008 data will be available in the autumn of 2009.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of offenders cautioned( 1)  for drunk and disorderly offences, broken down by sex, age and police force area, England and Wales, 2007( 2, 3) 
			   Male 
			  140/01, 141/01  age groups  
			  Police force area  10-15  16-19  20-25  26-30  31-40  41-50  51-60  61+  Total 
			 Avon and Somerset 5 28 16 5 9 8 4 - 75 
			 Bedfordshire - - - - - - - 1 1 
			 Cambridgeshire - - - - - - - - - 
			 Cheshire 5 15 13 1 3 4 3 3 47 
			 City of London - 3 2 2 8 5 2 1 23 
			 Cleveland 6 9 2 6 1 - 3 1 28 
			 Cumbria 11 34 15 1 9 12 3 - 85 
			 Derbyshire 3 9 3 - 1 - - 1 17 
			 Devon and Cornwall 15 88 57 25 43 45 16 6 295 
			 Dorset 2 11 5 - - 1 1 1 21 
			 Durham 15 47 12 4 2 7 2 - 89 
			 Essex - - - - - - - - - 
			 Gloucestershire - 4 3 1 2 3 - 1 14 
			 Greater Manchester 4 9 8 2 11 2 3 - 39 
			 Hampshire 4 25 14 2 4 9 1 1 60 
			 Hertfordshire 2 4 5 2 5 3 2 - 23 
			 Humberside 2 1 - 1 1 - - - 5 
			 Kent 20 22 20 10 9 5 2 - 88 
			 Lancashire 16 54 58 15 34 26 6 5 214 
			 Leicestershire - - - 2 - 1 - 1 4 
			 Lincolnshire 1 8 8 6 16 6 5 1 51 
			 Merseyside 9 21 35 16 23 12 2 5 123 
			 Metropolitan Police - 33 114 55 89 63 19 6 379 
			 Norfolk - 2 - - - - - 1 3 
			 North Yorkshire 4 13 9 3 5 5 3 3 45 
			 Northamptonshire - 1 - - - - - - 1 
			 Northumbria 76 180 147 65 81 48 25 12 634 
			 Nottinghamshire - - - - - - - - - 
			 South Yorkshire 12 24 2 3 1 2 - 2 46 
			 Staffordshire - 5 2 1 5 2 - 1 16 
			 Suffolk - 6 9 3 10 6 3 1 38 
			 Surrey 1 - 4 4 5 4 1 - 19 
			 Sussex 14 31 31 17 17 31 10 5 156 
			 Thames Valley 1 9 12 6 11 14 4 - 57 
			 Warwickshire - - - - - - - - - 
			 West Mercia 7 49 42 16 20 18 1 2 155 
			 West Midlands 4 40 35 15 29 15 10 4 152 
			 West Yorkshire 29 168 149 58 89 55 28 6 582 
			 Wiltshire 1 1 1 1 1 3 - - 8 
			 Dyfed-Powys 8 31 8 12 16 1 3 6 85 
			 Gwent 13 83 82 35 34 18 7 2 274 
			 North Wales 6 15 12 6 11 4 3 3 60 
			 South Wales 2 12 9 8 6 6 4 3 50 
			 England and Wales 298 1,095 944 409 611 444 176 85 4,062 
		
	
	
		
			   Female 
			  140/01, 141/01  age groups  
			  Police force area  10-15  16-19  20-25  26-30  31-40  41-50  51-60  61 +  Total 
			 Avon and Somerset 2 11 4 - 3 3 2 - 25 
			 Bedfordshire - - - 1 - - - - 1 
			 Cambridgeshire - - - - - - - - - 
			 Cheshire 4 4 2 1 4 1 - - 16 
			 City of London 1 - - 1 - - - - 2 
			 Cleveland 1 4 - 1 - 1 - - 7 
			 Cumbria 15 14 6 4 2 2 2 - 45 
			 Derbyshire 3 10 - 1 3 1 - - 18 
			 Devon and Cornwall 30 37 18 6 19 19 3 1 133 
			 Dorset 2 2 2 2 1 - - - 9 
			 Durham 16 18 7 1 4 2 3 - 51 
			 Essex - - - - - - - - - 
			 Gloucestershire - 2 1 - - - 1 - 4 
			 Greater Manchester 6 4 1 - 2 1 - - 14 
			 Hampshire 4 11 4 2 2 1 1 - 25 
			 Hertfordshire 1 2 2 1 1 - 2 - 9 
			 Humberside - 1 - - - - - - 1 
			 Kent 12 5 4 1 4 - 3 - 29 
			 Lancashire 16 50 21 5 19 17 7 - 135 
			 Leicestershire 1 1 - - - - - - 2 
			 Lincolnshire - 1 2 - - 1 - - 4 
			 Merseyside 13 12 2 4 8 1 - 3 43 
			 Metropolitan Police - 13 34 8 16 14 6 1 92 
			 Norfolk - - - - - - - - - 
			 North Yorkshire 8 10 1 1 2 2 1 - 25 
			 Northamptonshire - - - - - - - - - 
			 Northumbria 75 98 48 13 33 27 6 3 303 
			 Nottinghamshire - - - - - - - - - 
			 South Yorkshire 17 7 3 1 1 2 - 1 32 
			 Staffordshire 1 1 1 - 1 - - - 4 
			 Suffolk 1 3 - 1 - 1 1 1 8 
			 Surrey 3 3 1 - 3 2 1 - 13 
			 Sussex 11 16 3 4 10 7 1 2 54 
			 Thames Valley 6 4 2 3 2 2 - - 19 
			 Warwickshire - - - - - - - - - 
			 West Mercia 3 18 13 4 8 5 - - 51 
			 West Midlands 9 24 10 4 7 9 2 1 66 
			 West Yorkshire 38 65 48 18 50 23 4 - 246 
			 Wiltshire 1 - - - - - - - 1 
			 Dyfed-Powys 3 9 5 - 4 3 3 - 27 
			 Gwent 13 17 19 10 18 12 1 1 91 
			 North Wales 3 7 1 2 2 3 2 - 20 
			 South Wales 2 12 - - 3 3 1 - 21 
			 England and Wales 321 496 265 100 232 165 53 14 1,646 
			 (1) From 1 June 2000 the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 came into force nationally and removed the use of cautions for persons under 18 and replaced them with reprimands and warnings. These figures have been included in the totals. (2) These data are on the principal offence basis. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for drunk and disorderly offences, broken down by age, sex and police force area, England and Wales 2007( 1, 2) 
			   Male 
			   age groups  
			  Police force area  10-15  16-19  20-25  26-30  31-40  41-50  51-60  61 +  Total 
			 Avon and Somerset 4 35 40 24 55 62 73 18 311 
			 Bedfordshire 1 10 11 10 25 34 4 3 98 
			 Cambridgeshire 1 8 17 8 23 27 12 13 109 
			 Cheshire 7 34 32 25 41 40 6 3 188 
			 City of London - - 5 3 14 26 11 - 59 
			 Cleveland g 16 31 12 19 22 5 1 115 
			 Cumbria 6 78 94 45 62 49 11 3 348 
			 Derbyshire 4 39 60 31 48 32 9 2 225 
			 Devon and Cornwall 19 103 112 84 137 157 38 4 654 
			 Dorset 5 24 24 13 21 23 5 4 119 
			 Durham 13 72 37 23 22 15 9 - 191 
			 Essex 1 19 45 23 49 35 13 3 188 
			 Gloucestershire - 8 11 7 9 7 2 - 44 
			 Greater Manchester 8 37 68 24 63 49 20 3 272 
			 Hampshire 7 38 64 31 48 41 16 1 246 
			 Hertfordshire - 8 5 6 18 10 4 2 53 
			 Humberside 1 16 6 4 18 9 7 - 61 
			 Kent 14 57 71 35 107 78 19 7 388 
			 Lancashire 31 125 146 84 112 106 23 6 633 
			 Leicestershire - 4 7 3 7 7 8 - 36 
			 Lincolnshire - 12 20 7 15 11 4 - 69 
			 Merseyside 19 147 301 119 238 142 38 19 1,023 
			 Metropolitan Police 9 46 140 129 288 266 86 34 998 
			 Norfolk - 18 24 12 37 15 10 - 116 
			 North Yorkshire 1 25 44 29 70 53 22 8 252 
			 Northamptonshire 1 3 1 2 6 2 2 1 18 
			 Northumbria 106 902 1,165 464 577 312 112 25 3,663 
			 Nottinghamshire 3 28 63 46 49 33 11 4 237 
			 South Yorkshire 17 68 141 71 101 111 19 5 533 
			 Staffordshire 4 24 31 15 27 37 13 4 155 
			 Suffolk - 12 21 14 19 19 9 2 96 
			 Surrey - 7 25 30 35 30 22 4 153 
			 Sussex 7 62 71 44 116 89 42 6 437 
			 Thames Valley 2 38 52 21 42 47 19 3 224 
			 Warwickshire - 12 10 8 6 7 5 - 48 
			 West Mercia 3 95 138 53 63 38 11 11 412 
			 West Midlands 3 159 231 132 319 199 71 16 1,130 
			 West Yorkshire 29 201 315 179 347 247 76 21 1,415 
			 Wiltshire 1 6 20 7 28 18 7 5 92 
			 Dyfed-Powys 3 26 35 14 37 20 22 10 167 
			 Gwent 4 57 82 42 60 44 15 8 312 
			 North Wales 6 39 35 21 36 45 20 2 204 
			 South Wales 5 28 36 22 46 40 11 2 190 
			 England and Wales 354 2,746 3,887 1,976 3,460 2,654 942 263 16,282 
		
	
	
		
			   Female 
			   age groups  
			  Police force area  10-15  16-19  20-25  26-30  31-40  41-50  51-60  61 +  Total 
			 Avon and Somerset 5 6 5 3 9 5 3 - 36 
			 Bedfordshire 1 6 3 1 3 7 2 - 23 
			 Cambridgeshire 1 5 2 1 5 4 1 - 19 
			 Cheshire 1 6 4 4 6 14 2 - 37 
			 City of London - - - - - - - - - 
			 Cleveland 8 5 1 4 4 3 - - 25 
			 Cumbria 9 13 9 6 8 20 7 - 72 
			 Derbyshire 2 5 9 4 6 4 2 - 32 
			 Devon and Cornwall 11 39 11 10 19 12 7 - 109 
			 Dorset 2 4 3 - 5 5 - - 19 
			 Durham 4 20 13 3 9 3 - - 52 
			 Essex 1 3 4 4 6 1 - - 19 
			 Gloucestershire - 1 1 - 1 - 1 - 4 
			 Greater Manchester 1 9 4 2 5 5 2 - 28 
			 Hampshire 3 9 6 5 13 4 1 - 41 
			 Hertfordshire 1 - - 1 3 5 1 - 11 
			 Humberside 2 4 3 - - 2 1 - 12 
			 Kent 13 20 10 8 9 13 3 - 76 
			 Lancashire 13 32 23 16 13 23 2 - 122 
			 Leicestershire - 2 2 1 - - - - 5 
			 Lincolnshire - - - - 2 3 2 - 7 
			 Merseyside 4 27 29 14 52 39 12 3 180 
			 Metropolitan Police 15 17 13 9 30 27 10 2 123 
			 Norfolk 1 2 1 4 7 4 1 - 20 
			 North Yorkshire 8 17 4 4 11 5 7 1 57 
			 Northamptonshire - 2 1 - 1 - 1 - 5 
			 Northumbria 56 183 141 74 119 62 19 1 655 
			 Nottinghamshire 1 3 4 2 7 6 2 - 25 
			 South Yorkshire 7 18 24 7 17 10 2 - 85 
			 Staffordshire 6 9 5 3 5 10 8 - 46 
			 Suffolk - 3 2 3 5 1 - - 14 
			 Surrey - 8 1 2 10 12 5 - 38 
			 Sussex 6 14 14 6 21 24 1 - 86 
			 Thames Valley 6 4 1 3 10 11 2 - 37 
			 Warwickshire 1 3 - 2 1 - 1 - 8 
			 West Mercia 5 16 6 7 2 5 2 - 43 
			 West Midlands 8 30 21 25 19 26 5 - 134 
			 West Yorkshire 15 49 45 45 53 41 6 - 254 
			 Wiltshire 1 - 2 - 3 8 1 - 15 
			 Dyfed-Powys 2 10 7 8 5 20 - - 52 
			 Gwent 9 13 6 6 11 5 8 1 59 
			 North Wales 1 6 5 1 11 12 1 - 37 
			 South Wales 4 4 6 3 5 10 1 - 33 
			 England and Wales 234 627 451 301 531 471 131 9 2,755 
			 (1) These data are an the principal offence basis. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Number of penalty notices for disorder issued for being drunk and disorderly( 1)  by police force area and age group, 2007( 2) 
			   Male 
			   age groups  
			  Police force area  16-19  20-25  26-30  31-40  41-50  51-80  61+  Total 
			 Avon and Somerset 53 74 27 49 18 6 2 229 
			 Bedfordshire 39 92 28 46 22 7 2 236 
			 Cambridgeshire 72 113 60 63 51 17 4 380 
			 Cheshire 114 169 72 88 44 12 4 503 
			 City of London 12 87 59 65 25 4 - 252 
			 Cleveland 105 138 68 68 44 9 1 433 
			 Cumbria 137 226 77 107 52 16 5 620 
			 Derbyshire 190 201 79 114 49 22 6 661 
			 Devon and Cornwall 392 528 224 190 108 47 11 1,500 
			 Dorset 41 68 32 23 15 4 2 185 
			 Durham 172 295 81 110 66 14 2 740 
			 Essex 81 141 67 56 49 9 3 406 
			 Gloucestershire 28 30 17 20 17 7 1 120 
			 Greater Manchester 73 102 39 62 35 8 4 323 
			 Hampshire 113 190 61 91 46 9 2 512 
			 Hertfordshire 71 90 26 24 21 13 1 246 
			 Humberside 159 177 74 97 56 12 3 578 
			 Kent 476 632 241 305 195 62 17 1,928 
			 Lancashire 1,273 1,609 613 752 412 105 31 4,795 
			 Leicestershire 58 141 72 61 39 8 2 381 
			 Lincolnshire 15 28 12 11 3 2 - 71 
			 Merseyside 751 1,076 416 508 333 98 34 3,216 
			 Metropolitan Police 308 857 511 738 424 127 47 3,012 
			 Norfolk 55 83 32 55 21 8 - 254 
			 Northamptonshire 66 121 43 49 32 6 - 317 
			 Northumbria 927 1,457 541 562 300 70 22 3,879 
			 North Yorkshire 243 322 115 148 80 21 8 937 
			 Nottinghamshire 129 205 71 77 41 11 2 536 
			 South Yorkshire 539 869 306 364 160 32 12 2,282 
			 Staffordshire 97 114 41 58 41 9 8 368 
			 Suffolk 25 24 10 12 8 2 3 84 
			 Surrey 69 74 38 40 36 14 - 271 
			 Sussex 317 486 189 214 108 38 9 1,361 
			 Thames Valley 62 119 48 43 31 10 2 315 
			 Warwickshire 26 37 11 15 8 6 - 103 
			 West Mercia 145 208 69 74 29 8 3 536 
			 West Midlands 744 1,220 446 537 297 83 22 3,349 
			 West Yorkshire 589 854 324 352 190 57 10 2.376 
			 Wiltshire 64 103 29 31 28 4 4 263 
			 Dyfed-Powys 59 74 34 46 24 10 3 250 
			 Gwent 52 68 28 19 13 3 6 189 
			 North Wales 284 349 129 167 85 36 4 1,054 
			 South Wales 73 100 37 53 26 7 9 305 
			  
			 British Transport Police 84 203 101 201 137 39 11 776 
			  
			 England and Wales 9,382 14,154 5,598 6,765 3,819 1,092 322 41,132 
		
	
	
		
			   Female 
			   age groups  
			  Police force area  16-19  20-25  26-30  31-40  41-50  51-60  61+  Total 
			 Avon and Somerset 9 6 4 7 9 1 - 36 
			 Bedfordshire 5 7 5 7 4 1 - 29 
			 Cambridgeshire 11 16 3 3 11 3 1 48 
			 Cheshire 19 26 17 20 16 4 - 102 
			 City of London 4 6 8 10 4 - - 32 
			 Cleveland 25 25 13 25 20 2 3 113 
			 Cumbria 17 28 17 27 29 1 1 120 
			 Derbyshire 34 21 18 23 19 5 - 120 
			 Devon and Cornwall 57 68 26 45 35 10 1 242 
			 Dorset 5 3 2 9 3 - - 22 
			 Durham 28 52 19 35 18 10 - 162 
			 Essex 9 26 10 12 12 2 1 72 
			 Gloucestershire 9 3 1 6 1 - - 20 
			 Greater Manchester 23 19 6 11 9 3 1 72 
			 Hampshire 22 14 9 17 9 1 1 73 
			 Hertfordshire 14 11 4 3 10 - - 42 
			 Humberside 25 36 9 11 15 1 - 97 
			 Kent 75 78 45 81 48 10 2 339 
			 Lancashire 286 289 154 221 133 18 2 1,103 
			 Leicestershire 8 19 6 8 7 1 - 49 
			 Lincolnshire 1 1 1 2 1 - - 6 
			 Merseyside 161 185 74 133 111 13 2 679 
			 Metropolitan Police 60 100 75 133 88 20 6 482 
			 Norfolk 2 8 3 12 5 - - 30 
			 Northamptonshire 11 11 2 7 7 1 - 39 
			 Northumbria 264 360 155 223 137 20 1 1,160 
			 North Yorkshire 56 30 12 35 18 10 3 164 
			 Nottinghamshire 22 25 8 20 12 1 1 89 
			 South Yorkshire 124 136 50 71 54 3 - 438 
			 Staffordshire 12 20 8 15 6 2 2 65 
			 Suffolk 2 2 1 6 2 1 - 14 
			 Surrey 14 12 8 11 18 8 2 73 
			 Sussex 65 52 35 53 33 9 3 250 
			 Thames Valley 13 15 3 3 12 2 - 48 
			 Warwickshire 8 4 2 2 1 - - 17 
			 West Mercia 30 19 14 15 9 3 - 90 
			 West Midlands 117 135 67 93 72 15 4 503 
			 West Yorkshire 112 126 63 105 64 8 - 478 
			 Wiltshire 9 8 2 6 6 3 - 34 
			 Dyfed-Powys 1 12 3 10 9 1 - 36 
			 Gwent 4 2 3 8 2 2 - 21 
			 North Wales 48 32 14 40 21 11 1 167 
			 South Wales 8 15 12 10 13 2 - 60 
			  
			 British Transport Police 7 11 8 36 22 8 2 94 
			  
			 England and Wales 1,836 2,074 999 1,630 1,135 216 40 7,930 
			 (1) Data include the following offence descriptions and corresponding statutes: Being found drunk in a highway or other public place, whether a building or not, or on licensed premises-Licensing Act 1872, section 12; Being guilty while drunk of disorderly behaviour-Criminal Justice Act 1967, section 91. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: Office for Criminal Justice Reform-Evidence and Analysis Unit

Asylum

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which benefits in  (a) cash and  (b) kind his Department provides for asylum seekers awaiting a decision on their case who are (i) single, (ii) accompanied by their spouse or partner, (iii) have a partner and one child, (iv) have a partner and two children and (v) have a partner and three children.

Phil Woolas: Under the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 asylum seekers and their dependants are not permitted to access the mainstream system of welfare benefits.
	Asylum seekers and their dependants who need support to avoid destitution are given it by the UK Border Agency from the time they arrive in the UK until their claim is fully determined. Support takes the form of subsistence, accommodation or both.
	Accommodation is fully furnished and includes all utilities and council tax payment. It is provided through a series of target contracts which the UK Border Agency has entered into with both public and private sector accommodation providers.
	From 6 July 2009, levels of subsistence support will be per week £35.13 for a single asylum seeker aged 18 to 24 or £42.16 for a single asylum seeker aged over 25; £69.57 for an asylum seeker accompanied by a spouse or partner; £120.38 for an asylum seeker with a partner and one child under 16; £171.19 for an asylum seeker with a partner and two children under 16; £222.00 for an asylum seeker with a partner and three children under 16.
	From 5 October 2009, all new single applicants without children will receive £35.13 a week regardless of age.
	The regulations updating asylum support rates were laid before Parliament on 11 June 2009.

Asylum

Stephen Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of legacy asylum applications which will be decided by the 2011 target date.

Phil Woolas: The previous Home Secretary informed Parliament in July 2006 of
	the Immigration and Nationality Directorate's case load of around 400,000 to 450,000 electronic and paper records, which as hon. Members also know, are riddled with duplication and errors, and include cases of individuals who have since died or left the country, or are now EU citizens.
	She committed to tackling this case load in five years or less. The Case Resolution Directorate as made good progress and remain committed and on track to conclude these cases by summer 2011.

Asylum Seekers: Detention of Children

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average length of stay of a child aged 16 years or under in an immigration removal centre was in each of the last four years.

Alan Johnson: The information is not held centrally and could be provided only by checking individual records over the period requested at a disproportionate cost.

Asylum Seekers: Detention of Children

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children aged 16 years and under were detained in each asylum and immigration centre in each month in each of the last two years.

Alan Johnson: Statistics on persons (including children) entering detention held solely under Immigration Act powers in the first two quarters of 2009 will be published for the first time in August 2009 in the Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom-Q2 2009 and on a quarterly basis thereafter. Copies of this bulletin will be available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office's Research, Development and Statistics website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
	Information outside this time period is not available.

Asylum: Bahrain

Ken Purchase: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Bahrain nationals have been granted asylum in the UK.

Phil Woolas: It is not possible to provide information on people currently receiving asylum in the UK. People who have previously applied for or been granted asylum may not now currently reside in the UK. The number of Bahrain nationals who have applied for asylum in the UK between 2001 and 2008 was 10 principal applicants. The number who have been granted asylum at initial decision between 2001 and 2008 was five. Initial decisions do not necessarily relate to applications made in the same period.
	Information on main asylum nationalities is published annually and quarterly. The latest quarterly statistics were published on 24 February 2009 and are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html

Asylum: Families

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make an assessment of the merits of granting children who have remained in their country of origin while their parents have claimed asylum in the UK the right to join their parents in circumstances in which their parents are unable to return to their country of origin; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: There are no provisions under the immigrations rules which allow the family members of an asylum seeker to apply for entry clearance to join an individual here in the United Kingdom (UK) while an asylum claim is pending.
	The United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) recognises that families become fragmented because of the speed and manner in which a person seeking asylum has fled to the UK, therefore we allow dependants arriving at a later date to be added to a main applicants asylum claim, providing an initial decision has not yet been made on the asylum claim.
	Where an individual's claim for asylum has been successful, their minor children may apply for immediate family reunion under paragraph 352D of the immigration rules.

Asylum: Families

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make an assessment of the merits of extending the right to automatic family reunion to people claiming asylum from persecution who are granted the right to live in the UK under the Legacy programme; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: From 30 August 2005 individuals qualifying for asylum, including those qualifying under the Legacy programme, are normally granted five years limited leave to remain (LTR). Individuals who qualified for asylum prior to this date were granted indefinite leave to remain (ILR).
	The family reunion provisions contained in paragraph 352A-FI of the immigration rules, allows individuals granted asylum (either five years LTR or ILR) and those benefiting from a grant of five years humanitarian protection (HP) to sponsor an application for family reunion immediately, upon their grant of leave.
	The right to sponsor an application under family reunion provisions will fall away once the sponsor has obtained their British citizenship and family members will be expected to apply under the general settlement rules, laid out in part 8 of the immigration rules.

Asylum: Families

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make an assessment of the merits of granting children who have remained in their country of origin and who have reached the age of 18 years in the period during which their parents have been seeking asylum in the UK, the right to join their parents in the UK on the settlement of their parents' asylum claim if they turn 18 during the period in which the claim is being settled; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: Family reunion is intended to allow family members (that is, those who formed the part of the family unit prior to the time that the sponsor fled to seek protection) to reunite with their sponsors who are recognised refugees or are benefiting from humanitarian protection (post 30 August 2005) in the UK.
	Only pre-existing families are eligible for family reunion under the provisions of the immigration rules, paragraph 352A-FI, that is the spouse, civil partner, unmarried/same sex partner and minor children who formed part of the family unit at the time the sponsor fled to seek asylum.
	Family members who do not meet the requirements of the family reunion provisions may still be considered for family reunion if compassionate and compelling circumstances exist. Each case is considered on its individual merits.

British Nationality

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were granted UK citizenship in each of the last four quarters for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: The latest quarterly figures were published in Table 4b in the 'Control of Immigration: Quarterly Statistical Summary, United Kingdom-First Quarter 2009' available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs09/immiq109.pdf
	A copy of the table follows:
	
		
			  Table 4b: Grants of British citizenship in the United Kingdom by basis of grant and refusal, Q4 2006 to Q1 2009 
			Grants by basis of grant  
			   Total grants  Residence  Marriage  Minor Children  Other  Total refusals 
			 2006 Q4 36,465 19,675 5,360 10,200 1,235 3,295 
			 2007 Q1 44,610 24,230 6,620 11,970 1,790 4,185 
			 2007 Q2 40,370 21,250 7,250 10,265 1,610 3,155 
			 2007 Q3 43,770 23,590 8,955 9,730 1,485 4,170 
			 2007 Q4 35,890 18,715 7,600 8,565 1,010 4,115 
			 2008 Q1 34,875 18,220 7,685 8,115 855 2,575 
			 2008 Q2 23,325 10,575 4,460 7,230 1,060 1,860 
			 2008 Q3 32,220 16,185 8,005 7,040 995 2,310 
			 2008 Q4 38,955 20,735 8,925 8,450 845 2,340 
			 2009 Q1 54,615 27,720 13,455 12,545 890 2,715 
		
	
	Data for quarter two are scheduled for publication on 27th August 2009 and will be available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics website
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html

British Nationality

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals have had their British citizenship revoked by his Department since 19 February 2001; and how many such individuals have been  (a) removed,  (b) deported and  (c) excluded from the UK.

Phil Woolas: Three individuals have been deprived of their British citizen status since 2001. A fourth has had a deprivation order served but the deprivation has not yet come into effect. None of these four have been removed or deported because two, who are overseas, have been excluded following deprivation. One of these has appealed against the deprivation decision. There is no right of appeal against exclusion.

Community Relations

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2009,  Official Report, column 1482W, on community relations: finance, what the title is of each of the 33 projects aimed at disrupting violent extremism.

David Hanson: holding answer 28 April 2009
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 20 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 906-07W.

Crime: West Yorkshire Police Force

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the crime detection rate for West Yorkshire police force was in each year since 1996-97.

Alan Campbell: The information requested is given in the tables.
	It should be noted that non-sanction detections that contribute to the percentage change in total detection rates have fallen in recent years reflecting a significant shift by many police forces away from recording detections of crime where no further action is taken. For this reason overall detection rates over time are not fully comparable. From 1 April 2007 the rules governing recording of non-sanction detections were revised to reduce the scope within which they can be claimed to a very limited set of circumstance.
	There are other changes affecting trends in detection rates that are discussed in section 3.5 of Volume 2 of 'Crime in England Wales 2008/09' which has been deposited in the Library of the House.
	
		
			  Table 1: Detection rates in West Yorkshire 
			   Detection rate (percentage) 
			 1996 24 
			 1997 27 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Detection rates in West Yorkshire 1998-99 to 2001-02( 1,2) 
			   Detection rate (percentage) 
			 1998-99 27 
			 1999-2000 25 
			 2000-01 23 
			 2001-02 19 
			 (1) The coverage was extended and counting rules revised from 1998-99. Figures from that date are not directly comparable with those for 1997. (2) The data in this table are prior to the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for later years. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Detection rates in West Yorkshire 2002-03 to 2008-09( 1) 
			   Detection rate (percentage) 
			 2002-03 20 
			 2003-04 20 
			 2004-05 25 
			 2005-06 28 
			 2006-07 29 
			 2007-08 24 
			 2008-09 26 
			 (1) The data in this table take account of the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for earlier years.

Crimes of Violence: Yorkshire

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) crimes of violence against the person and  (b) crimes were recorded in (i) West Yorkshire and (ii) Hemsworth constituency in each year since 1996-97.

Alan Campbell: The available information is given in the following tables.
	Statistics for Hemsworth are not collected centrally. Figures have been provided for the Wakefield local authority area which includes Hemsworth.
	
		
			  Table 1 :  Offences recorded by the police in West Yorkshire and Wakefield, 1996 and 1997 
			  Number of offences 
			  Area and offence  1996  1997 
			  West Yorkshire   
			 Violence against the person 8,376 8,183 
			 Total recorded crime 268,716 244,142 
			
			  Wakefield   
			 Violence against the person n/a n/a 
			 Total recorded crime n/a n/a 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2 :  Offences recorded by the police in West Yorkshire and Wakefield, 1998-99 to 2001-02( 1, 2) 
			  Number of offences 
			  Area and offence  1998-99  1999-2000  2000-01  2001-02 
			  West Yorkshire 
			 Violence against the person 16,683 17,738 17,091 19,104 
			 Total recorded crime 273,809 260,237 258,908 298,845 
			  
			  Wakefield 
			 Violence against the person n/a 2,630 2,412 2,632 
			 Total recorded crime n/a n/a n/a 35,053 
			 (1) The coverage was extended and counting rules revised from 1998-99. Figures from that date are not directly comparable with those for 1997. (2 )The data in this table are prior to the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for later years. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3 :  Offences recorded by the police in West Yorkshire and Wakefield, 2002-03 to 2008-09( 1) 
			  Number of offences 
			  Area and offence  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			  West Yorkshire
			 Violence against the person 30,850 45,864 44,609 48,879 43,267 39,027 34,573 
			 Total recorded crime 322,794 325,556 263,534 258,887 249,670 228,195 217,223 
			 
			  Wakefield
			 Violence against the person 4,208 7,225 6,715 7,924 7,330 6,250 5,381 
			 Total recorded crime 42,220 48,302 37,573 37,847 35,407 31,161 29,732 
			 (1 )The data in this table takes account of the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for earlier years.

Criminal Records Bureau

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to end the system of enhanced Criminal Records Bureau disclosures; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: Part V of the Police Act 1997 which underpins the disclosure service makes provision for the issue of three levels of disclosure: basic, standard and enhanced. The disclosure service plays a vital role in the enabling organisations to make better informed and safer recruitment decisions. There are no plans to end this system or indeed cease the issuing of enhanced criminal records checks (enhanced disclosures).

Criminal Records Bureau: Vetting

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals in each region have undergone  (a) two,  (b) three,  (c) four and  (d) five or more standard or enhanced Criminal Records Bureau checks in respect of posts which would require their names to be added to the list maintained under the (i) Protection of Children Act 1999 and (ii) Protection of Vulnerable Adults Act 2003 in each of the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 138-39W.

Criminal Records Bureau: Vetting

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average time taken by the Criminal Records Bureau was to undertake checks in respect of individuals applying for posts which would require their names to be added to the list maintained under the  (a) Protection of Children Act 1999 and  (b) Protection of Vulnerable Adults Act 2003 in each police force area in each of the last (i) five years and (ii) 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer of 29 June 2009,  Official Report, columns 79-80W.

Cyber Security

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what mechanisms are in place to ensure that measures adopted to protect cyber security respect human rights.

David Hanson: As with all national security activity, it is vital that Government powers are used proportionately and in a way that is consistent with individual liberty. The UK's Cyber Security Strategy sets out in unambiguous terms the need to preserve and protect the rights to which we are accustomed, and to build a strong ethical foundation for activity to provide security in and through cyber space. As part of the cross-Government programme of cyber security work announced on 25 June 2009, the Government will establish an Ethics Advisory Committee to advise on this issue and the House will be updated on its membership.

Cyber Security

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the Cyber Security Operations Centre will work in co-operation with the Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence.

David Hanson: The Cyber Security Operations Centre (CSOC) will be established to bring together existing multi-agency efforts to provide situational awareness, analysis and incident response co-ordination in the cyber security field. It will co-ordinate its activities internationally with appropriate allied organisations and, where appropriate, enable the enhancement of existing departmental linkages.
	The United Kingdom is fully supportive of this Estonian-hosted Cyber Defence initiative and their endeavours in this important area. As a NATO accredited entity, the MOD has acted as the UK's interface to the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence, providing participation in events sponsored by the Centre and specific mutually beneficial workstreams.

Cyber Security

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how he plans to improve knowledge of cyber security among  (a) citizens,  (b) businesses and  (c) other Government Departments;
	(2)  how he plans to reduce the impact of cyber operations on UK interests;
	(3)  how he plans to reduce the vulnerability of UK interests to cyber warfare operations;
	(4)  how he plans to reduce the likelihood of potential adversaries launching a cyber attack against the UK;
	(5)  what steps he plans to take to involve  (a) members of the public,  (b) business and  (c) international partners in the cyber security strategy;
	(6)  what recent discussions he had with cyber security experts from higher education institutions on implementing the cyber security strategy.

David Hanson: The Government's Cyber Security Strategy, published last month, announced new governance structures and a cross-Government programme of work in pursuit of the UK's strategic cyber security objectives. These objectives include reducing the risks and exploiting the opportunities from our use of cyber space through improving knowledge, capabilities and decision-making.
	These objectives will be delivered through eight new workstreams, overseen by the Office of Cyber Security and supported by the Cyber Security Operations Centre:
	Workstream 1: Safe, secure and Resilient Systems
	Workstream 2: Policy, Doctrine, Legal and Regulatory Issues
	Workstream 3: Awareness and Culture Change
	Workstream 4: Skills and Education
	Workstream 5: Technical Capabilities and Research and Development
	Workstream 6: Exploitation
	Workstream 7: International Engagement
	Workstream 8: Governance, Roles and Responsibilities
	These workstreams will build on existing work to take forward the Government's plans for reducing the impact on and vulnerability of the UK's interests from cyber attacks. They also describe how the Government would improve knowledge and awareness of the issues and the range of stakeholders who will be involved in the process, including the public.
	As the Strategy makes clear, this programme will be delivered through a partnership approach comprising Government, organisations across all sectors, and the public.

Cybercrime

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what definition his Department uses of  (a) cyber terrorism and  (b) cyber warfare.

David Hanson: Broadly, an act of 'cyber terrorism' refers to a non-physical attack by terrorists on our information and communications infrastructure. As the UK's Cyber Security Strategy makes clear, terrorists and violent extremists also make use of cyberspace for purposes such as communication, co-ordination, propaganda, fundraising, radicalisation and recruitment. However, due to the inherent challenges associated with attributing responsibility for actions in cyberspace, our security approach aims to address the range of threats which may manifest in the cyber domain rather than seeking to categorise specific actions as cyber terrorism.
	There is an ongoing and broad debate regarding what 'cyber warfare' might entail. However, it is clear that the defence and exploitation of information systems are increasingly important for national security and we recognise the need to develop military and civil capabilities to ensure that we can defend against attack and take steps against adversaries where necessary.

Cybercrime

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent steps his Department has taken to reduce levels of  (a) cyber attacks and  (b) other cross-jurisdictional crimes affecting the UK.

David Hanson: The Government's Cyber Security Strategy, published last month, announced new governance structures and programmes of work in pursuit of the UK's strategic cyber security objectives.
	The Office of Cyber Security (OCS), based in the Cabinet Office, will be established in September 2009 to provide strategic leadership for and coherence across Government on all cyber security issues. These include measures to improve the security and resilience of critical systems in the public and private sector, enhance our ability to detect cyber attacks and work to develop international law and doctrines of national defence in cyberspace.
	The Government have also recently published Extending Our Reach: A Comprehensive Approach to Tackling Serious Organised Crime. Organised crime is an international business, for example, trafficking in drugs or illegal immigrants. In addition, much e-crime is committed by individuals outside the UK's borders.
	We need to act wherever we can have the greatest impact on reducing the harms to the UK and its citizens. That is why we have operational footprint across the world, including in South America, Africa and Afghanistan. SOCA work with Spanish authorities, for example, has led to the arrest of 101 subjects who had fled from UK justice to Spain. Among these there have been 25 drug traffickers, 12 individuals wanted for murder and eight money launderers.
	International work can be the most effective way to cut organised crime profits, bring criminals to justice and reduce the harms caused in the UK.

Cybercrime

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cyber attacks have been detected against  (a) his Department and  (b) the UK Border Agency in the last five years.

Alan Johnson: The Government consider a range of information on such issues and take appropriate steps where necessary. It would not be in the interests of national security to provide information about specific threats and attacks, either in terms of the type of threat, the method or the target, as this could aid potential adversaries.

Cyberspace

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions he has held with his US and European counterparts on a multilateral approach to securing cyberspace.

David Hanson: The Cabinet Office currently provides the lead for policy on cyber security and has, supported by representatives from across Government, continued to engage closely with international partners during the development of the UK's recently published Cyber Security Strategy.
	As the strategy explains, the security of cyberspace is a transnational issue and, as such, working with international partners and organisations, including those in the US and Europe, is essential to achieving the UK's strategic cyber security objectives.

Departmental Accountancy

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to publish his Department's resource accounts for 2008-09.

Phil Woolas: The Department has published the 2008-09 resource accounts in the Journal Office. Copies are available in the Vote Office, shortly after they are laid. The Department expects to publish the 2008-09 resource accounts within one month of laying the typescript accounts.

Departmental Contracts

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many contracts let by his Department were awarded to businesses with fewer than 50 employees in each of the last five years; and what the monetary value of such contracts was in each such year.

Phil Woolas: The Home Department is committed to implementing the recommendations of the Glover report and is working to achieve these. It has the ability to identify small and medium-enterprises (SMEs) on its system and currently has 1,883 registered.
	The Department does not capture company size information in relation to number of employees below that of the definition of SMEs, which are enterprises that employ fewer than 250 employees.

Departmental Contracts

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many facilities management contracts have been let by his Department in each of the last 12 years.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 20 July 2009
	This information is not held and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Disciplinary Proceedings

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many members of staff at each pay band in his Department and its agencies had been  (a) suspended on full pay and  (b) on sick pay for (i) over 12 months, (ii) six to 12 months and (iii) three to six months at the latest date for which figures are available.

Alan Johnson: There are currently 26,099 staff in the Home Office and its agencies. Of those 26,000:
	 (a) 93 are suspended on full pay
	 (b) (i) None have been on paid sickness absence for more that 12 months. Home Office policy is to cease paying staff whose sickness absence exceeds 12 months. (ii) Fewer than 178 have been on paid sickness absence for between six and 12 months. (iii) Fewer than 651 have been on paid sickness absence for between three and six months.
	Detailed breakdowns of suspensions and sickness absences by pay band are attached. It is not possible to provide precise answers to  (b) (ii) and (iii) as the detailed breakdown by pay band includes groups of fewer than five. In those cases further information is withheld on grounds of confidentiality.
	
		
			  Table  ( a ) : questions (i) over 12 months (ii) six to 12 months and ( iii) three to six months 
			   Home Office (including its agencies) 
			  Grade  Over 12 months  6 to  12 months  3  to  6 months 
			 AA (1) - 0 (1) - 
			 AO 8 5 14 
			 EO 16 8 20 
			 G6 0 0 0 
			 G7 (1) - 0 (1) - 
			 HEO (1) - (1) - 6 
			 SCS 0 0 0 
			 SEO 0 (1) - 0 
			 (1) Fewer than five  Notes: 1. The table includes all suspensions within the UK Border Agency, as UKBA do not centrally hold information on whether staff were suspended on full pay. 2. Where fewer than five members of staff have been suspended, further information has been withheld on confidentiality grounds. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table (b) (ii) Home Office staff paid sickness absences accrued 6 to 12 months 
			  Grade  Home Department 
			 AA 26 
			 AO 59 
			 EO 55 
			 HEO 27 
			 SEO 6 
			 G7 (1) - 
			 G6 0 
			 SCS 0 
			 (1 )Fewer than five 
		
	
	
		
			  Table (b) (iii) Home Office staff paid sickness absences accrued 3 to 6 months 
			  Grade  Home Department 
			 AA 98 
			 AO 247 
			 EO 203 
			 HEO 57 
			 SEO 26 
			 G7 12 
			 G6 (1) __ 
			 SCS (1) __ 
			 (1) Fewer than five  Notes: 1. Figures represent number of staff whose total sick absences during the period accrued to the relevant duration in each table  2. Period covered-1 June 2008 to 31 May 2009  Source: Home Office Dataview May 2009

Departmental Manpower

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the nationalities are of employees based in his Department's Abu Dhabi hub.

Alan Johnson: For staff security reasons, My hon. Friend the Minister of State for Borders and Immigration will write to the hon. Gentleman in confidence with the information he has requested.

Departmental Manpower

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of employees in his Department are  (a) women and  (b) men; and what the average hourly pay of the (i) male and (ii) female employees in his Department was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 Civil service statistics are collected by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) from annual civil service employment surveys (ACSES). The latest published statistics are for 31 March 2008 and can be found at:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/pdfdir/cs0109.pdf
	ONS collects the annual gross salary of civil servants and does not produce hourly rates of pay.

Departmental Nurseries

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what crèche facilities his Department provides for its employees working in Whitehall.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 25 June 2009
	The Home Office does not provide crèche (nursery) facilities for its staff. The Department does however operate a Childcare Voucher Salary Sacrifice Scheme which is open to all staff at all locations. In addition Home Office staff are able to use the Westminster holiday playscheme at subsidised rates. This scheme is run during the school holidays for children aged between four-12 and provision is shared by a number of Government Departments.
	In addition to childcare support the Home Office also has in place a range of policies to help staff who are working parents balance work and home. These include enhanced maternity, adoption and paternity pay, flexible working patterns, for example, part time working and job sharing as well as special paid and unpaid leave provision.

Departmental Official Cars

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2009 , Official Report, columns 1639-40W, on official cars, how many of the cars  (a) owned and  (b) leased by (i) his Department and (ii) its agencies are over six years old.

Phil Woolas: The four cars are owned by the UK Border Agency.
	Cars leased by the Home Department and its executive agencies are usually returned to the lease company at or shortly after three years.

Departmental Pay

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which  (a) sections of his Department and  (b) non-departmental public bodies for which he is responsible have requested money saved from efficiency savings to be used for increased pay in their 2009 pay offers to staff.

Phil Woolas: No section of the Home Office, nor any of the non-departmental public bodies for which the Home Office is responsible, has requested money saved from efficiency savings to be used for increased pay in its 2009 pay offer to staff.

Departmental Procurement

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress his Department has made in implementing the recommendations of the Glover report in its procurement processes.

Phil Woolas: The Home Department is fully participating in the work and has representation on the boards of the cross-departmental projects set up by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Office of Government Commerce for the implementation of the Glover Report recommendations.
	The Home Department's progress on the implementation of the report's recommendations includes:
	(a) investment in a Procurement and Commercial Toolset which enables the electronic advertisement of contract opportunities through a free online portal;
	(b) migration of tender documentation to a system to issue all tender documentation electronically by 2010;
	(c) work is on target for the online publication in standard format of details of contract awardees by 2010;
	(d) completion of work so that the Department can clearly identify its SME suppliers and report monthly on its prompt payment performance for these suppliers. SME prompt payment performance for June 2009 is 99 per cent. of all payments made being within agreed terms;
	(e) completion of work so that the Department is able to identify its SME community. Currently there are 1,883 SME suppliers who supply 25 per cent. of total invoices received each month.
	In addition to implementation of the recommendations, the Department has recognised SMEs for the second year running in its annual Supplier Value Awards Programme. Work is proceeding with several SMEs on a number of strategically important tasks such as the approach to corporate social responsibility.

Departmental Responsibilities

John Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many hours the Minister of State, Borders and Immigration, spent on his Ministerial duties in the week beginning 7 June 2009.

Phil Woolas: I had a full diary of official duties.

Deportation: Finance

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 29 June 2009,  Official Report, column 72W, on immigration: deportation, what the cost to the public purse was of engaging contractors to facilitate the removal of individuals deported by the UK Border Agency in each of the last five years.

Phil Woolas: The value of contracts between the UK Border Agency and its escorting suppliers is commercially sensitive and cannot therefore be disclosed.

Deportation: Prisoners

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much compensation has been awarded to foreign national prisoners held in custody beyond the expiry of their sentence while awaiting deportation in each month in each of the last five years.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 14 July 2009
	A breakdown of compensation paid by the UK Border Agency to foreign national prisoners held in custody beyond the expiry of their sentence made from April 2008 to June 2009 is outlined in the following table:
	
		
			  Month/year  £ 
			 April 2008 36,500.00 
			 May 2008 36,590.00 
			 June 2008 7,500.00 
			 July 2008 78,500.00 
			 August 2008 25,000.00 
			 September 2008 24,000.00 
			 October 2008 19,000.00 
			 November 2008 41,329.29 
			 December 2008 15,000.00 
			   
			 January 2009 750.00 
			 February 2009 54,500.00 
			 March 2009 67,727.92 
			 April 2009 54,500.00 
			 May 2009 20,000.00 
			 June 2009 18,000.00 
			 Total 498,897.21 
		
	
	A breakdown of the monthly compensation figures of foreign national prisoners before April 2008 is unavailable.

Deportation: Zimbabwe

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his Department's policy is on deporting people to Zimbabwe.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 10 June 2009
	We keep our policy on enforced returns to Zimbabwe under constant review. Since the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal RN-returnees-country guidance judgment last November, all cases are being reviewed on a case-by- case basis. Those asylum seekers deemed to need protection will be granted it. Where the independent courts have confirmed that it is safe for an individual to return home, we do not consider that it is right to ask the UK taxpayer to support them. Instead we expect those not at risk to return home and hundreds of Zimbabweans have done so since we halted the enforced return of failed asylum seekers in September 2006. Any failed asylum seeker who is unable to return home through no fault of their own can apply for support.

Detainees

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for North Norfolk of 2 July 2009,  Official Report, column 404W, on detainees, if he will make it his policy to collect information on the number of people detained on the basis of evidence which had not been disclosed to the detainee.

David Hanson: The Home Office does not intend to introduce a system to collect statistics on the number of persons detained without charge on the basis of evidence which had not been disclosed to the detainee.

Driving Offences: Insurance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people in each police authority area were found to be driving  (a) without a licence,  (b) without insurance,  (c) under the influence of drink and  (d) under the influence of drugs in each of the last 10 years.

Alan Campbell: Data on the number of defendants found guilty for the offences requested, covering 1998 to 2007 (latest available), are provided in tables 1 to 3 below:
	
		
			 Table 1: Findings of guilt at all courts for the offence Driving, or causing or permitting another person to drive other than in accordance with licence, in England and Wales, by police force area, 1998-2007(1,2) 
			  Number of offences 
			  Police force area  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 Avon and Somerset 5,215 4,970 5,451 4,896 5,778 6,517 7,120 5,612 4,779 3,455 
			 Bedfordshire 1,354 1,121 1,242 1,661 1,835 1,960 1,933 2,006 1,752 1,358 
			 Cambridgeshire 1,105 1,008 1,143 1,043 1,265 1,399 1,591 1,656 1,836 1,285 
			 Cheshire 1,834 2,047 2,350 2,261 2,738 3,236 3,224 2,287 1,967 2,091 
			 Cleveland 1,623 1,786 2,100 2,304 2,871 2,551 3,463 2,439 2,243 1,454 
			 Cumbria 1,459 1,538 1,470 1,592 1,532 1,554 1,641 1,114 1,032 903 
			 Derbyshire 1,761 1,896 2,204 2,466 2,774 2,800 3,679 3,589 2,496 2,441 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1,766 1,932 2,658 2,699 3,205 3,469 3,350 2,639 2,629 2,113 
			 Dorset 1,132 1,396 1,614 1,645 1,915 2,350 1,954 1,912 1,679 1,179 
			 Durham 1,753 2,665 2,430 2,791 2,934 2,885 2,514 1,785 1,343 1,403 
			 Essex 1,991 2,348 2,809 2,840 2,832 2,945 3,000 3,156 3,027 3,169 
			 Gloucestershire 1,488 1,630 1,527 1,547 1,245 1,370 1,341 1,238 1,096 989 
			 Greater Manchester 12,423 14,407 15,103 17,500 18,207 20,043 18,852 15,896 12,941 9,051 
			 Hampshire 3,869 4,331 4,094 4,166 4,802 4,717 4,526 3,754 3,046 3,085 
			 Hertfordshire 1,333 1,351 1,813 2,092 2,594 3,211 3,406 3,629 3,283 2,387 
			 Humberside 1,818 2,137 2,235 2,075 2,107 2,660 2,763 2,645 2,664 1,956 
			 Kent 2,022 1,771 3,195 3,770 4,245 4,575 5,197 4,281 3,769 2,825 
			 Lancashire 6,333 6,230 6,717 5,978 6,998 8,773 6,538 7,402 5,785 4,813 
			 Leicestershire 3,257 3,811 3,708 3,874 4,245 4,951 4,889 3,302 2,689 1,785 
			 Lincolnshire 1,830 2,064 1,958 1,758 1,810 2,468 3,050 2,281 2,103 1,363 
			 London, City of 698 596 407 481 707 946 830 848 907 695 
			 Mersey side 4,291 4,086 4,892 4,630 5,533 7,094 6,961 5,787 3,619 4,350 
			 Metropolitan Police 11,424 11,129 11,332 12,806 15,403 19,486 24,210 24,725 25,063 24,614 
			 Norfolk 1,288 1,419 1,296 1,465 1,754 2,367 2,092 1,799 1,365 1,356 
			 Northamptonshire 1,519 2,335 1,665 856 458 1,946 3,051 2,185 1,338 1,184 
			 Northumbria 4,607 5,441 5,598 5,654 5,774 6,206 5,864 5,972 5,463 4,315 
			 North Yorkshire 1,162 1,324 1,222 1,017 1,017 1,201 1,271 1,194 1,196 1,031 
			 Nottinghamshire 3,341 3,201 3,415 3,622 3,563 4,648 4,935 4,151 3,235 3,011 
			 South Yorkshire 3,913 4,639 4,808 5,740 6,065 5,734 4,937 5,156 4,511 3,066 
			 Staffordshire 2,683 3,140 3,970 2,645 3,190 3,513 3,948 3,710 3,073 2,314 
			 Suffolk 952 1,182 1,093 1,320 1,554 1,977 1,994 1,479 1,234 1,016 
			 Surrey 742 1,020 1,196 1,354 1,509 1,295 1,490 1,541 1,359 2,004 
			 Sussex 1,925 2,028 1,943 2,057 1,900 1,817 1,654 1,739 1,899 1,931 
			 Thames Valley 2,953 3,928 4,069 3,952 4,778 5,619 5,488 4,827 4,638 4,050 
			 Warwickshire 1,202 1,110 1,233 1,365 1,356 1,775 2,259 1,986 1,685 1,444 
			 West Mercia 3,017 3,033 3,130 3,441 3,462 3,639 3,616 3,590 3,233 2,446 
			 West Midlands 10,847 9,541 11,371 11,446 14,760 17,729 20,070 16,268 14,693 10,023 
			 West Yorkshire 7,308 7,991 8,299 9,363 8,457 11,191 14,631 11,613 9,166 6,565 
			 Wiltshire 1,087 1,083 1,265 1,889 1,760 1,770 1,672 1,632 1,510 993 
			 England 120,375 128,669 138,025 144,061 158,992 184,389 195,026 174,825 152,448 125,738 
			
			 Dyfed Powys 892 967 1,005 933 1,176 1,180 872 980 807 788 
			 Gwent 1,743 1,900 2,113 2,150 2,156 1,857 1,644 1,450 1,396 1,008 
			 North Wales 1,698 1,622 1,552 1,382 1,733 2,690 2,866 2,009 2,229 1,758 
			 South Wales 5,934 6,277 6,281 5,665 6,853 6,732 6,632 5,171 4,420 3,231 
			 Wales 10,267 10,766 10,951 10,130 11,918 12,459 12,014 9,610 8,852 6,785 
			
			 England and Wales 130,642 139,435 148,976 154,191 170,910 196,848 207,040 184,435 161,300 132,523 
			 (1) It is known that for some police force areas, the reporting of court proceedings In particular those relating to summary motoring offences, may be less than complete. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations a are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: The Office for Criminal Justice Reform - Evidence and Analysis Unit 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Findings of guilt at all courts for offences for offences of using a motor vehicle uninsured against third party risks, in England and Wales, by police force area, 1998 to 2007( 1,2) 
			  Number of offences 
			  Police force area  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 Avon and Somerset 9,945 9,419 9,578 8,455 9,766 10,633 10,925 8,741 7,483 5,874 
			 Bedfordshire 3,007 2,337 2,323 2,916 3,184 3,524 3,220 3,371 3,168 2,682 
			 Cambridgeshire 2,526 2,250 2,226 1,989 2,298 2,728 2,678 2,854 3,456 2,631 
			 Cheshire 3,701 3,892 4,110 3,927 4,600 5,414 5,412 3,925 3,844 4,336 
			 Cleveland 2,939 3,058 3,597 3,643 4,325 4,017 5,124 3,851 3,410 2,352 
			 Cumbria 2,888 2,780 2,699 2,906 2,888 2,868 2,764 2,208 2,103 2,154 
			 Derbyshire 3,559 3,651 3,945 4,261 4,736 4,956 5,557 5,238 3,874 4,492 
			 Devon and Cornwall 4,301 4,710 5,890 5,742 6,380 6,635 6,217 5,259 5,371 4,786 
			 Dorset 2,792 3,021 3,548 2,986 3,388 4,276 3,634 3,594 3,222 2,638 
			 Durham 3,103 4,488 4,338 4,361 4,632 4,535 4,065 3,212 2,460 2,610 
			 Essex 4,672 5,061 5,356 5,417 5,401 5,487 5,368 5,459 5,373 5,759 
			 Gloucestershire 2,903 2,876 2,548 2,692 2,297 2,599 2,451 2,064 1,889 1,825 
			 Greater Manchester 21,620 23,842 24,020 26,600 27,805 29,827 26,939 23,087 20,472 15,658 
			 Hampshire 8,071 8,157 7,578 7,677 8,135 8,148 7,509 6,291 5,390 5,369 
			 Hertfordshire 3,072 2,805 3,332 3,691 4,214 5,099 5,401 5,735 5,876 4,558 
			 Humberside 3,535 3,943 4,065 3,657 3,576 4,460 4,348 4,181 4,443 2,855 
			 Kent 4,849 4,261 6,431 7,063 7,722 7,485 8,377 7,073 7,079 6,277 
			 Lancashire 11,274 10,857 11,054 9,812 11,107 13,770 10,011 11,016 9,487 8,637 
			 Leicestershire 6,289 7,312 6,752 6,849 7,435 8,114 7,822 5,379 4,370 3,173 
			 Lincolnshire 3,478 3,758 3,321 2,970 3,070 4,298 4,781 3,921 3,883 2,893 
			 London, City of 1,431 1,141 777 1,021 1,333 1,606 1,125 1,070 1,130 907 
			 Merseyside 7,791 6,995 7,813 7,794 8,688 10,756 10,555 8,906 6,673 7,567 
			 Metropolitan Police 23,048 21,033 20,247 22,677 27,307 31,703 36,707 36,242 37,280 38,214 
			 Norfolk 3,066 3,020 2,851 3,040 3,610 4,486 3,750 3,456 3,187 2,790 
			 Northamptonshire 3,288 4,178 2,998 1,643 913 3,261 4,671 3,621 3,126 2,067 
			 Northumbria 8,138 9,356 9,430 9,251 9,364 9,904 9,159 9,417 8,697 7,306 
			 North Yorkshire 2,577 2,679 2,572 2,216 2,124 2,369 2,537 2,592 2,323 2,430 
			 Nottinghamshire 6,710 6,205 6,082 6,261 6,005 7,730 7,833 6,372 5,170 4,886 
			 South Yorkshire 7,918 8,512 8,956 10,163 10,101 9,966 8,571 8,546 7,924 5,996 
			 Staffordshire 5,444 5,767 6,760 4,723 5,764 6,128 6,370 6,018 5,439 4,373 
			 Suffolk 2,288 2,557 2,330 2,387 2,862 3,594 3,548 2,744 2,509 2,026 
			 Surrey 2,056 2,285 2,577 2,826 3,158 2,900 2,604 2,886 2,724 3,898 
			 Sussex 4,165 4,220 3,808 4,016 3,730 3,694 3,102 3,401 3,802 3,994 
			 Thames Valley 6,351 7,315 7,456 7,128 8,334 9,760 9,208 7,931 7,640 7,116 
			 Warwickshire 2,410 2,205 2,316 2,672 2,395 2,905 3,438 2,970 2,993 2,461 
			 West Mercia 5,666 5,238 5,542 5,766 S,858 6,051 5,540 5,642 5,715 4,458 
			 West Midlands 19,144 16,495 18,010 18,221 22,202 25,557 27,734 25,108 21,612 15,517 
			 West Yorkshire 14,875 16,105 15,649 15,934 14,043 17,101 20,308 16,344 13,832 10,048 
			 Wiltshire 2,719 2,564 2,625 3,281 3,170 3,022 2,794 2,828 2,797 1,922 
			 England 237,609 240,348 245,510 248,634 267,920 301,366 302,157 272,553 251,226 219,535 
			
			 Dyfed Powys 1,964 2,050 2,076 1,914 2,293 2,243 1,650 1,897 1,753 1,728 
			 Gwent 3,363 3,470 3,808 3,836 3,676 3,465 2,980 2,774 2,682 2,001 
			 North Wales 3,323 3,104 2,848 2,565 3,003 4,542 4,797 3,348 3,979 2,940 
			 South Wales 10,715 10,550 10,335 9,809 11,607 11,756 11,232 8,776 8,033 6,607 
			 Wales 19,365 19,174 19,067 18,124 20,579 22,006 20,659 16,795 16,447 13,276 
			
			 England and Wales 256,974 259,522 264,577 266,758 288,499 323,372 322,816 289,348 267,673 232,811 
			 (1) It is known that for some police force areas, the reporting of court proceedings in particular those relating to summary motoring offences, may be less than complete. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, It is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Source: The Office for Criminal Justice Reform-Evidence and Analysis Unit 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Findings of guilt at all courts for offences of driving etc. after consuming alcohol or taking drugs( 1) , in England and Wales, by police force area, 1998 to 2007( 2,3) 
			  Number of offences 
			  Police force area  1998  1999  2000( 4)  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 Avon and Somerset 2,566 2,728 2,462 2,197 2,401 2,666 2,692 2,595 2,457 2,490 
			 Bedfordshire 1,060 869 797 914 955 1,072 1,028 1,050 1,152 1,064 
			 Cambridgeshire 1,060 941 793 813 852 933 1,083 1,214 1,268 1,240 
			 Cheshire 1,903 1,827 1,652 1,529 1,993 1,905 2,128 1,709 1,866 1,804 
			 Cleveland 870 811 777 887 921 981 1,071 959 1,032 948 
			 Cumbria 856 871 806 761 768 843 907 853 859 868 
			 Derbyshire 1,547 1,463 1,417 1,411 1,465 1,617 1,874 1,645 1,520 1,466 
			 Devon and Cornwall 2,265 2,277 2,199 2,369 2,441 2,667 2,560 2,446 2,336 2,247 
			 Dorset 1,186 1,120 1,115 1,150 1,199 1,264 1,239 1,207 1,156 1,191 
			 Durham 1,035 1,137 1,124 1,097 1,136 1,170 1,277 1,168 1,002 1,051 
			 Essex 2,438 2,528 2,462 2,456 2,522 2,622 2,853 2,549 2,697 2,553 
			 Gloucestershire 985 889 804 865 926 890 913 834 812 725 
			 Greater Manchester 4,715 4,850 4,801 4,715 4,720 4,743 4,811 4,653 4,570 4,462 
			 Hampshire 3,597 3,725 3,472 3,464 3,846 3,663 3,743 3,372 2,993 2,974 
			 Hertfordshire 1,672 1,679 1,552 1,666 1,894 1,904 1,881 1,836 1,860 1,830 
			 Humberside 1,358 1,323 1,371 1,259 1,395 1,445 1,623 1,592 1,518 1,071 
			 Kent 2,627 2,633 2,592 2,575 2,745 2,811 3,010 2,907 2,824 2,836 
			 Lancashire 2,945 3,010 2,584 2,304 2,599 2,652 2,706 2,723 2,775 2,756 
			 Leicestershire 1,485 1,624 1,531 1,546 1,659 1,725 1,754 1,631 1,512 1,520 
			 Lincolnshire 979 941 816 877 847 1,111 1,209 1,176 1,274 1,233 
			 London, City of 301 236 152 162 221 230 169 184 168 189 
			 Merseyside 2,451 2,137 2,123 2,195 2,293 2,687 2,849 2,964 2,737 2,541 
			 Metropolitan Police 13,889 12,414 11,801 11,260 12,905 12,621 13,227 12,887 13,075 12,237 
			 Norfolk 1,118 1,010 935 1,143 1,220 1,274 1,240 1,265 1,335 1,246 
			 Northamptonshire 1,062 1,058 782 399 236 799 922 853 1,016 879 
			 Northumbria 2,457 2,463 2,621 2,529 2,588 2,747 2,675 2,561 2,559 2,482 
			 North Yorkshire 1,205 1,124 1,073 1,066 1,119 1,194 1,131 1,244 1,261 1,194 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,804 1,802 1,722 1,598 1,420 1,644 1,669 1,626 1,699 1,517 
			 South Yorkshire 2,002 1,927 2,122 2,020 1,945 2,089 2,224 2,220 2,019 2,023 
			 Staffordshire 1,955 1,711 0 1,513 1,704 1,733 1,733 1,718 1,657 1,704 
			 Suffolk 1,042 1,089 902 920 1,105 1,213 1,332 1,103 1,158 1,058 
			 Surrey 1,328 1,417 1,539 1,592 1,614 1,464 1,425 1,503 1,413 1,517 
			 Sussex 2,113 2,224 2,112 2,358 2,306 2,430 2,368 2,379 2,475 2,479 
			 Thames Valley 3,896 3,725 3,496 3,275 4,317 3,884 3,539 3,474 3,419 3,356 
			 Warwickshire 784 856 786 880 841 918 845 871 895 994 
			 West Mercia 1,794 1,747 1,631 1,740 1,719 1,797 1,689 1,917 2,008 1,904 
			 West Midlands 5,582 4,775 4,559 4,914 5,050 5,233 5,584 5,693 5,554 5,483 
			 West Yorkshire 3,669 3,597 3,375 3,220 3,564 3,720 3,897 3,863 3,587 3,429 
			 Wiltshire 1,108 1,009 930 1,045 1,005 1,031 1,024 1,038 1,028 816 
			 England 86,709 83,567 77,788 78,684 84,456 87,392 89,904 87,482 86,546 83,377 
			
			 Dyfed Powys 995 944 858 867 927 995 986 932 927 906 
			 Gwent 1,203 1,079 1,211 1,152 1,074 1,149 1,188 1,129 1,188 1,097 
			 North Wales 1,306 1,248 1,332 1,227 1,270 1,326 1,349 1,364 1,335 1,297 
			 South Wales 2,903 2,526 2,757 2,812 2,761 2,840 2,811 2,811 2,675 2,546 
			 Wales 6,407 5,797 6,158 6,058 6,032 6,310 6,334 6,236 6,125 5,846 
			
			 England and Wales 93,116 89,364 83,946 84,742 90,488 93,702 96,238 93,718 92,671 89,223 
			 (1) Data provided cover summary offences of driving etc. after consuming alcohol or taking drugs (which cannot be reliably distinguished separately). (2) It is known that for some police force areas, the reporting of court proceedings in particular those relating to summary motoring offences, may be less than complete. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Staffordshire police force were only able to submit sample data for persons proceeded against and convicted in the magistrates courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust enough at a detailed level and have been excluded from the table.  Source: The Office for Criminal Justice Reform-Evidence and Analysis Unit

Drugs

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate his Department has made of the volume of  (a) heroin,  (b) cocaine and  (c) cannabis to have entered the UK without detection at the point of entry in each of the last five years.

Alan Johnson: Estimates published in 2003 placed imports of cocaine powder to supply the UK cocaine markets at 35-45 tonnes and heroin at 25-35 tonnes.
	There are no agreed estimates of cannabis imported into the UK.

Drugs

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent estimate his Department has made of the volume of  (a) heroin and  (b) cocaine to have been smuggled into the UK by each method of importation in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Alan Johnson: The most recent estimates of illicit drugs smuggled into the United Kingdom are contained within the 2008-09 UK Threat Assessment published by the Serious Organised Crime Agency. There are no precise estimates of the methods of importation.
	The following table shows the proportion of heroin and cocaine seized by HM Revenue and Customs and UK Border Agency officers during the financial year 2007-08, broken down by mode of transport.
	
		
			  Percentage 
			   Heroin  Cocaine 
			 Freight 69 53 
			 Passenger traffic 20 43 
			 Post 4 2 
			 Other 7 2

Emergency Services: Standards

John Horam: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the name is of each Category 1 Responder under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 whose emergency procedures the Department has checked since January 2008; what the nature of the checks made was; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The Audit Commission works with partner inspectorates (i.e. HM Inspectorate for Constabularies, the Care Quality Inspectorate, HM Inspectorate of Prisons; HM Inspectorate of Probation and Ofsted) to assess the performance of local services in England through the comprehensive area assessment. HMIC carried out an inspection of 21 (of 43 English and Welsh) police forces between September 2008 and April 2009, examining three subjects: civil contingency planning; critical incident handling; and public order response. A consolidated report with the thematic findings of these inspections will be published in three to four weeks time.

Entry Clearance Officers

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many entry clearance officers based in  (a) Pakistan and  (b) the Abu Dhabi visa hub are fluent in the (i) Punjabi and (ii) Pashto language.

Alan Johnson: In Pakistan, one entry clearance officer is fluent in Punjabi and none are fluent in Pashto.
	Twenty-four locally engaged staff members are fluent in Punjabi and two are fluent in Pashto.
	Eighty-two members of Gerry's staff are fluent in Punjabi and seven are fluent in Pashto.
	In Abu Dhabi, four entry clearance officers are fluent in Punjabi and none are fluent in Pashto.
	Two locally engaged staff members are fluent in Punjabi and none are fluent in Pashto.
	One VFS staff member is fluent in Punjabi and none are fluent in Pashto.
	Applicants are required to provide certified translations of any documents that are not in English. Visa application forms have to be submitted in English. As a result, there is only a limited requirement for interpretation into local languages which can be satisfied through our locally-engaged staff.

Entry Clearance Officers

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many translators work in support of entry clearance officers in  (a) Pakistan and  (b) Abu Dhabi.

Alan Johnson: We do not require translators as all local documents are accompanied by a certified English translation. Our administrative support staff across the two locations speak Urdu, Punjabi, Pushto, Potohari, Saraiki, Sindi, Arabic, Persian, French, German, Swahili, Luganda, Lunyankole, Kinyarwanda, Pahari, Hindko and Dari, Arabic, Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Mandarin, French Nepali, Filipino, Amharic, Russian and Polish. They assist with any translation needs.

Entry Clearances

John Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people in  (a) the London Borough of Hillingdon,  (b) Greater London and  (c) England applied for leave to remain in the UK outside of immigration rules in each of the last five years; and how many did not have valid leave to remain at the time of their application.

Phil Woolas: The UK Border Agency is only able to provide the total number of applications received outside of the immigration rules over the past five years.
	To further breakdown the information as requested UKBA would have to:
	(a) accurately determine the applicant's geographical location. This would involve trawling each application, validating the applicant's postcode, and cross-matching this with a list of postcodes for the London borough of Hillingdon.
	(b) review the applicant's previous immigration history, including determining if the individual had valid leave to remain at the time of application(s). This would involve trawling each application, reviewing any previous applications made to the Home Office to determine if the applicant's leave to remain was valid at the time of application(s).
	The reasons above demonstrate why the further breakdown of information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Leave to remain (LTR): Number of applications received in the UK by UKBA outside of the immigration rules 
			   Number 
			 2004-05 3,206 
			 2005-06 4,179 
			 2006-07 5,760 
			 2007-08 6,196 
			 2008-09 2,047

Entry Clearances

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many face-to-face interviews with visa applicants from  (a) Afghanistan and  (b) Pakistan have been conducted by entry clearance officers based in Islamabad since 27 October 2008.

Alan Johnson: All applicants must submit their applications in person to our commercial partner Gerry's, where they are also required to give biometrics (electronic fingerprints), which are checked against immigration and criminal databases.
	Supporting documents are checked by the visa section at the high commission in Islamabad for fraud and forgery. Approximately 29 visa applicants have been called in on the basis of risk assessment for face-to-face interviews in Islamabad since 27 October 2008.

Entry Clearances

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many UK Border Agency visa risk assessment officers in Abu Dhabi are working in  (a) Canada,  (b) Nigeria,  (c) Kazakhstan and  (d) New Zealand.

Phil Woolas: Risk assessment officers based in Abu Dhabi are responsible for assessing applications from Pakistan, UAE and other Gulf posts.

Entry Clearances

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether an academic institution is required to register as a sponsor under the new tier 4 immigration rules if all the courses they offer for overseas students are for a period of less than six months.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 8 July 2009
	Students who enter the UK for a period of less than six months can choose whether to apply to enter under Tier 4 of the points based system or under the student visitor category.
	For students entering the UK under Tier 4, the education provider must be on the register of Tier 4 sponsors.
	The student visitor category is a distinct category separate from the points based system. In addition to meeting the requirements of the visitor rules the student visitor must be able to demonstrate that he has been accepted on a course of study at an institution which is:
	the holder of a Sponsor Licence for Tier 4 of the Points Based System, or
	accredited by a UKBA approved accreditation body, or
	an overseas higher education institution offering only part of their programmes in the United Kingdom , holding their own national accreditation and offering programmes that are of an equivalent level to a United Kingdom degree.
	Further information on the student visitor route is available at:
	http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/studyingintheuk/student-visitors/

Entry Clearances

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many decisions by entry clearance officers have been overturned by a Minister in each year since 1997.

Phil Woolas: I refer to the answer my hon. Friend gave to the hon. Member for Bury St. Edmunds (Mr. Ruffley) on 22 March 2001,  Official Report, column 317W, and to the answer given to my hon. Friend on 2 November 2001,  Official Report, column 910W.
	We have no records from this date until December 2008. Since December 2008, four decisions to refuse entry clearance to the United Kingdom have been overturned following the exercise of ministerial discretion.

Entry Clearances: Complaints

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many complaints each visa hub has received on the issue of visas to applicants in each of the last three years.

Alan Johnson: The UK Border Agency and its predecessor UKvisas received and recorded 1,623 complaints globally relating to visa matters in 2008. UK visas did not centrally collate this information before 2008.
	To obtain further information would be at disproportionate cost. Due to the reduction of visa issuing posts during this time, it is not possible to break figures down by post.

Entry Clearances: Kosovo

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consideration he has given to the merits of allowing visa applications to be made at the British Embassy in Pristina.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 19 June 2009
	Nationals of Kosovo who wish to apply for UK visas are currently required to lodge their applications at our visa section in Skopje. We are, however, looking into the feasibility of opening a visa office in Pristina but have not yet reached a conclusion.

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent estimate he has made of the number of foreign students enrolled at colleges not listed on the UK Border Agency's accreditation list; and what assessment he has made of how this affects their immigration status.

Phil Woolas: Information on the number of foreign students currently enrolled at colleges which have not been granted a sponsorship licence is not held centrally and could be obtained only by investigating individual case files.
	Students may continue to study at colleges which have not been granted a sponsorship licence until their current period of leave lapses. Their immigration status will be affected if they wish to seek further leave as a student. To qualify they will be required to meet the full requirements of the new rules including providing evidence that they are sponsored by a college which has been granted a licence by the UK Border Agency. Details of the new rules can be found at:
	http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/applicationforms/pbs/Tier4migrantguidance.pdf
	http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/studyingintheuk/quickguideforstudent

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many overseas students of each  (a) age,  (b) sex and  (c) nationality have been granted visas to study in the UK in each of the last five years.

Alan Johnson: Please see the following table in relation to how many overseas students of each  (a) age,  (b) sex and  (c) nationality have been granted visas to study in the United Kingdom in each of the last five years.
	
		
			  Sum of student visas issued 
			  Nationality  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Afghanistan 59 80 135 101 78 
			 Albania 275 321 465 558 239 
			 Algeria 319 265 391 512 334 
			 Andorra - 1 4 4 1 
			 Angola 279 332 389 431 211 
			 Anguilla - - - - - 
			 Antigua and Barbuda 7 10 22 20 31 
			 Argentina 139 190 197 221 211 
			 Armenia 128 137 201 192 88 
			 Australia 775 743 758 875 1,030 
			 Austria - - - 1 - 
			 Azerbaijan 449 489 521 614 238 
			 Bahamas 39 81 91 85 74 
			 Bahrain 585 555 630 640 592 
			 Bangladesh 2,406 2,988 3,544 3,653 3,253 
			 Barbados 107 176 163 136 131 
			 Belarus 578 741 753 897 239 
			 Belgium - - - 1 - 
			 Belize 5 15 18 18 15 
			 Benin 26 38 38 26 22 
			 Bermuda - 1 1 - - 
			 Bhutan 18 14 19 16 12 
			 Bolivia 93 116 134 100 88 
			 Bosnia and Herzegovina 167 170 142 140 71 
			 Botswana 254 240 329 410 327 
			 Brazil 623 4,612 3,216 3,868 4,671 
			 British Citizen 3 2 2 1 3 
			 British Dependent Territories Citizen - - - 1 1 
			 British National Overseas 3,831 3,343 3,082 2,824 2,690 
			 British Overseas Citizen 4 6 7 4 6 
			 British Protected Person - - - - - 
			 British Subject 1 - - - - 
			 Brunei 424 536 660 903 961 
			 Bulgaria 698 621 735 1 1 
			 Burkina 20 19 18 10 20 
			 Burma (Myanmar) 243 358 304 400 337 
			 Burundi 11 6 8 11 6 
			 Cambodia 38 32 33 45 33 
			 Cameroon 418 447 458 542 308 
			 Canada 2,223 2,457 2,559 2,919 3,343 
			 Cape Verde 8 9 2 51 9 
			 Cayman Islands - 2 - 1 1 
			 Central African Republic 9 1 4 6 3 
			 Chad 12 8 8 15 5 
			 Chile 200 254 337 415 407 
			 China 22,333 18,312 21,239 24,944 27,879 
			 Colombia 2,616 2,808 3,089 4,497 5,479 
			 Comoros 3 5 3 1 - 
			 Congo 96 54 63 88 52 
			 Costa Rica 1 17 22 30 32 
			 Croatia 706 821 210 192 194 
			 Cuba 44 48 60 59 38 
			 Cyprus 126 49 23 17 20 
			 Czech Republic 53 1 - - - 
			 Democratic Republic Of Congo 55 55 60 67 44 
			 Djibouti 6 8 9 14 3 
			 Dominica 14 33 31 19 18 
			 Dominican Republic 31 33 40 44 50 
			 Ecuador 426 410 452 498 335 
			 Egypt 530 576 1,260 1,201 790 
			 El Salvador 7 20 17 11 12 
			 Equatorial Guinea 10 14 13 40 40 
			 Eritrea 30 18 18 10 3 
			 Estonia 3 - - - - 
			 Ethiopia 160 152 129 132 113 
			 Fiji 14 18 14 18 15 
			 Gabon 39 33 46 48 23 
			 Gambia 458 430 428 384 503 
			 Georgia 598 527 630 796 441 
			 Germany - - 2 1 - 
			 Ghana 1,963 1,157 1,107 922 791 
			 Gibraltar - - - - - 
			 Greece - - - 2 - 
			 Grenada 19 42 43 31 38 
			 Guatemala 10 20 17 19 26 
			 Guinea 99 87 82 59 39 
			 Guinea-Bissau 13 7 22 14 6 
			 Guyana 78 88 89 72 55 
			 Haiti 15 14 14 12 8 
			 Honduras 1 12 9 15 10 
			 Hong Kong 2,080 2,027 2,337 2,583 2,871 
			 Hungary 1 1 - - - 
			 Iceland - 1 - - 2 
			 India 17,620 19,237 22,240 22,709 28,586 
			 Indonesia 869 716 665 701 743 
			 Iran 1,407 1,487 2,018 2,280 2,402 
			 Iraq 128 195 375 417 363 
			 Ireland - 1 - - - 
			 Israel 663 2,021 728 319 326 
			 Italy - - - 1 1 
			 Ivory Coast 234 138 147 137 74 
			 Jamaica 255 224 187 203 151 
			 Japan 8,849 8,623 8,175 7,018 5,684 
			 Jordan 944 861 1,022 985 821 
			 Kazakhstan 4,385 4,960 6,257 4,667 1,621 
			 Kenya 1,103 885 970 924 1,017 
			 Kiribati - 2 1 - - 
			 Korea (North) 13 7 4 3 3 
			 Kosovo - - - - 5 
			 Kuwait 779 731 823 1,144 1,134 
			 Kyrgyzstan 248 247 373 323 161 
			 Laos 11 16 4 5 5 
			 Latvia 5 - - 1 - 
			 Lebanon 415 396 396 342 302 
			 Lesotho 12 8 24 10 7 
			 Liberia 10 9 6 14 12 
			 Libya 2,567 2,950 3,871 2,418 3,640 
			 Lithuania 17 - - 1 - 
			 Macau 32 83 89 105 133 
			 Macedonia 146 216 178 212 177 
			 Madagascar 25 32 26 25 21 
			 Malawi 242 564 371 588 251 
			 Malaysia 4,853 4,618 4,645 5,473 5,890 
			 Maldives 12 85 90 86 87 
			 Mali 33 16 26 41 32 
			 Malta 5 - - - - 
			 Mauritania 15 21 30 33 20 
			 Mauritius 1,357 1,553 1,224 943 816 
			 Mexico 1,066 1,259 1,346 1,543 1,494 
			 Micronesia - - - 1 - 
			 Moldova 269 190 216 126 98 
			 Monaco - 2 3 2 4 
			 Mongolia 194 198 291 981 313 
			 Montenegro - - - 1 30 
			 Morocco 564 398 455 389 297 
			 Mozambique 56 62 28 32 32 
			 Namibia 45 33 44 34 26 
			 Nauru - - - - - 
			 Nepal 442 607 801 1,112 653 
			 Netherlands - - - 1 - 
			 New Zealand 148 162 136 207 208 
			 Nicaragua 5 3 9 10 11 
			 Niger 17 18 14 20 7 
			 Nigeria 7,863 8,584 7,574 7,695 8,579 
			 Norway - - 1 - 1 
			 Oman 1,199 1,040 1,226 1,128 884 
			 Pakistan 14,017 9,346 12,497 9,589 6,628 
			 Palestinian Authority 90 80 114 92 2 
			 Panama 4 26 23 30 52 
			 Papua New Guinea 10 13 7 2 13 
			 Paraguay 7 12 19 25 14 
			 Peru 400 419 441 460 442 
			 Philippines 1,943 1,479 962 1,556 7,519 
			 Poland 7 - - - 1 
			 Portugal - - - - - 
			 Qatar 414 507 710 942 938 
			 Refugee (Art 1 1951 Convention) 20 11 10 8 5 
			 Romania 854 938 840 2 3 
			 Russia 10,289 13,109 22,326 22,744 3,757 
			 Rwanda 52 58 58 71 70 
			 San Marino 1 1 3 2 1 
			 Sao Tome and Principe 16 50 53 8 7 
			 Saudi Arabia 3,273 3,713 4,474 6,249 10,427 
			 Senegal 68 76 105 163 140 
			 Serbia - - - 42 27 
			 Seychelles 1 - 2 2 3 
			 Sierra Leone 240 219 275 211 134 
			 Singapore 1,016 884 1,053 1,004 1,262 
			 Slovakia 8 - 1 - - 
			 Slovenia 1 - - - - 
			 Solomon Islands 2 4 2 2 3 
			 Somalia 16 4 4 4 3 
			 South Africa 446 506 526 496 523 
			 South Korea 7,109 8,346 7,588 6,581 6,580 
			 Soviet Union 1 - - 1 - 
			 Spain - 1 - - - 
			 Sri Lanka 1,809 2,038 2,379 2,759 3,233 
			 St. Helena - - - - - 
			 St. Kitts and Nevis 10 13 16 14 12 
			 St. Lucia 40 98 84 70 74 
			 St. Vincent 14 50 64 43 36 
			 Stateless (Art 1 1951 Convention) 64 40 39 31 15 
			 Sudan 581 620 486 423 227 
			 Surinam 3 4 4 3 5 
			 Swaziland 39 28 20 22 12 
			 Sweden 1 - - - - 
			 Switzerland - - 2 - - 
			 Syria 643 748 2 883 686 394 
			 Taiwan 9,299 9,327 9,630 7,007 4,340 
			 Tajikistan 62 96 96 66 53 
			 Tanzania 809 902 1,061 914 936 
			 Thailand 5,142 4,900 5,339 5,236 4,518 
			 Togo 36 15 32 23 13 
			 Tonga - 5 3 6 3 
			 Trinidad and Tobago 392 440 450 491 401 
			 Tunisia 109 143 262 490 90 
			 Turkey 4,448 7,586 8,752 8,277 5,554 
			 Turkmenistan 257 458 217 175 203 
			 Turks and Caicos Islands - - - 1 - 
			 Tuvalu - 1 - - - 
			 Uganda 865 632 497 564 627 
			 Ukraine 1,835 1,272 1,751 1,857 753 
			 United Arab Emirates 1,280 1,114 1,170 1,168 1,251 
			 United Nations 4 1 3 11 8 
			 United States 8,713 8,938 9,250 11,317 14,981 
			 Unknown 367 327 310 422 491 
			 Uruguay 12 16 20 29 34 
			 Uzbekistan 517 759 1,281 1,042 399 
			 Vanuatu 1 - - - - 
			 Venezuela 92 330 471 764 842 
			 Vietnam 1,404 1,414 1,554 1,907 1,921 
			 Western Samoa 2 3 - 1 - 
			 Yemen 349 272 297 289 296 
			 Yugoslavia 1,512 1,468 1,128 1,183 341 
			 Zambia 474 470 477 559 386 
			 Zimbabwe 796 791 490 371 238 
			 Grand total 189,520 196,893 219,676 222,425 208,383 
		
	
	This information will be published in the statistical bulletin in August 2009.

Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether regulations under Tier 4 of the points-based immigration system apply in the case of students who enter the UK for a study period of less than six months.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 6 July 2009
	Those wishing to come to the UK to study for a period of less than six months can choose whether to apply to enter under Tier 4 of the points-based system or under the student visitor category. If they choose to apply under Tier 4 of the points-based system they must be intending to study at an institution which is registered with the UKBA as a licensed Tier 4 sponsor. In addition they must be enrolled on a course which leads at least to an approved qualification at level 3 or above of the National Qualifications Framework.
	Those wishing to come to study for a period of less than six months on a course which is below level 3 NVQ, can apply under the student visitor category. Short-term students (i.e. those studying on courses of six months duration or less) who do not intend to take part-time employment or undertake a paid or unpaid work placement as part of their course can also benefit from these provisions. The college at which the student intends to study must either be accredited by a UKBA approved accreditation body, or be an overseas higher education institution offering only part of their programmes in the United Kingdom, holding its own national accreditation and offering programmes that are of an equivalent level to a United Kingdom degree. These requirements prove the necessary assurance that the prospective student is coming to study at a bona fide educational establishment.
	Further information on the student visitor route is available at:
	http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/studyingintheuk/student-visitors/

Extra-curricular Activities

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent steps his Department has taken to provide after-school activities for young people.

David Hanson: holding answer 20 July 2009
	£1 million funding was provided to the Tackling Knives Action Programme areas to deliver extra positive activities on Friday and Saturday nights in areas where crime, criminal gangs and antisocial behaviour are a concern. Monitoring information from these local areas shows that to the end of March more than 14,000 young people had benefited.
	Through the Open drive, Government are challenging local areas to provide activities when young people and the community want them, particularly on a Friday and Saturday night. In 2009-10 an additional £28 million has been provided to all local authorities through the Positive Activities for Young People programme with an emphasis on providing activities at these times.

Foreign Workers

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many  (a) highly-skilled migrants and  (b) dependants of highly-skilled migrants of each nationality were given leave to enter the UK under (i) the highly-skilled migrants programme and (ii) Tier 1 of the points-based immigration system in each of the last eight quarters for which figures are available;
	(2)  how many  (a) migrants and  (b) dependants of migrants were given leave to enter the UK under Tier 1 of the points-based immigration system in the second quarter of 2009.

Phil Woolas: The information requested by the hon. Member is summarised in the following table:
	
		
			   HSMP  Tier 1 
			  Calendar year  Main applicant  Dependant  All  Main applicant  Dependant  All 
			 2007 Q2 2,411 1,161 3,572 0 0 0 
			 2007 Q3 2,637 1,611 4,248 0 0 0 
			 2007 Q4 2,938 1,742 4,680 0 0 0 
			 2008 Q1 3,615 1,883 5,498 0 0 0 
			 2008 Q2 2,659 1,430 4,089 265 163 428 
			 2008 Q3 470 722 1,192 2,630 1,020 3,650 
			 2008 Q4 155 738 893 5,720 2,254 7,974 
			 2009 Q1 98 503 601 7,801 3,468 11,269 
			 2009 Q2 142 578 720 4,812 3,532 8,344 
			  Note: The data are unpublished and should be treated as provisional.  Source: CRS 14.7.09

Forensic Science Service

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many historic crimes were solved at each Forensic Science Service site in each of the last 10 years.

Alan Campbell: It is not the role of the Forensic Science Service to solve crime. Its job is to assist the police in providing intelligence that will assist with the investigation. It is a matter for police and the Crown Prosecution Service to decide the value of the intelligence, and for the courts to determine its weight as evidence.
	The FSS does not maintain records of the results of cases in which they have been involved.

Forensic Science: Police

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's paper on the risk modelling of in-house forensic services provided by police forces.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 3 July 2009
	The Forensic Science Regulator has published for consultation a set of quality standards that should equally apply to any police in-house forensic work. He has also commissioned a survey to assess the nature and extent of police in-house forensic provision and is currently assessing the outcome of that.

Freedom of Information

Daniel Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in respect of which requests for information received by his Department in 2008 under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 it has received permission to extend the deadline for a response by more than 40 days; and what the reason for the request for an extension was in each case.

Phil Woolas: The Freedom of Information Act 2000 obliges public authorities to respond to requests for information within 20 working days. The exception is where an exemption is being considered that engages the public interest test. In these cases the period for response can be extended. In a small number of instances responses have taken longer. There were 50 such cases in 2008.
	Explanations for the delay in each case could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment.

Phil Woolas: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has no plans at this time to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment.

Government Departments: Cybercrime

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what recent reports he has received on cyber attacks on Government websites in  (a) South Korea and  (b) the US;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of cyber attacks against Government IT systems in each of the last three years; and how many such attacks originated outside the UK;
	(3)  what his most recent assessment is of the likelihood of cyber-attack on the UK by another state; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The Government consider a range of information on such issues and takes appropriate steps where necessary. It would not be in the interests of national security to provide information about specified threats an attacks, either n terms of the type of threat, the method or the target, as this could aid potential adversaries.

Home Office Property Group: Manpower

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people are employed in the Home Office Property Group; and what the staffing costs of the group were in the last 12 months.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 20 July 2009
	In October 2006 the Home Office restructured its estates management functions and created two internal shared service organisations which by October 2007 had reduced estates staff by just over 45 per cent. with a £5 million per year saving on staff costs. At the end of last financial year in March 2009 HO General Property in the Department's shared services directorate had 136 staff including 18 direct delivery staff, with a net cost to the Department of pay/non-pay expenditure of £4.4 million. Services to the Departments custodial estate are delivered by the Ministry of Justice.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Inter Departmental Ministerial Group last met to discuss human trafficking; and how many times the group has met to discuss human trafficking in the last two years.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Inter Departmental Ministerial Group (IDMG) last met in March and will meet again in the near future.
	The IDMG meets on a quarterly basis and has done so over the past two years.

ICT

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of his Department's computers were compromised by malicious software in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: It is not in the interests of the UK's national security for Departments to confirm information on the number of malicious attacks against their IT systems.
	The Home Office complies with mandatory requirement 39 of the Security Policy Framework which requires a policy on managing risks posed by all forms of malicious software ('malware').

ICT

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many trojan computer programmes have been detected on  (a) Home Office,  (b) UK Border Agency and  (c) Immigration and Passport Service computers in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many  (a) alien key logging devices and  (b) items of alien key logging software have been detected on (i) Home Office, (ii) UK Border Agency and (iii) Immigration and Passport Service computers in each of the last five years.

Alan Johnson: It is not in the interests of the UK's national security for Departments to confirm information on the number of malicious attacks against their IT systems.
	The Home Office complies with mandatory requirement 39 of the Security Policy Framework which requires a policy on managing risks posed by all forms of malicious software ('malware').

Immigration

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average waiting time for processing  (a) immigration and  (b) citizenship applications was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 19 March 2009
	 Information showing turnaround performance on immigration applications for the period April 2006-March 2007 is published on the UKBA website.
	The average process time for citizenship applications at the end of June 2009 was under three months compared to a published service standard of six months. Process times are driven by the volume of applications received.

Immigration

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals are awaiting decisions on their immigration status while present in the UK from each country of origin.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 19 June 2009
	The requested information is not collated in this way across the range of workstreams and could be produced only at disproportionate cost.
	The chief executive of the UK Border Agency, Lin Homer, updates the Home Affairs Select Committee twice a year on work to clear the historic backlog of unresolved asylum cases by summer 2011. A copy of Ms Homer's letter of 7 July 2009 is in the Library.

Immigration

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent discussions he has had with his French counterpart on immigration matters; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: The Secretary of State for the Home Department has not yet had any discussions with his French counterpart on immigration matters. I have met with Eric Besson the French Minister for Immigration, Integration, National Identity and Co-Development on four occasions:
	11 February 2009-Bilateral meeting, London, UK
	23 June 2009-Bilateral meeting, Paris, France
	6 July 2009-Meeting at the Anglo-French summit, Evian, France
	16 July 2009-Meeting at the Informal meeting of European Union Justice and Home Affairs Ministers in Stockholm, Sweden.

Immigration Controls

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to paragraph 8.19 of the United Kingdom's Strategy for Countering International Terrorism, published in March 2009, what recent progress his Department has made on the formation of powers to exclude European Economic Area nationals from entering the UK on grounds of national security, unacceptable behaviour, public order or serious criminality.

Phil Woolas: Amendments to the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006 were laid on 5 May and came into effect on 1 June. Among other changes, the Home Secretary now has the personal power to exclude EEA individuals, and members of their families, if he considers that their exclusion from the UK is justified on the grounds of public policy, public security or public health.
	Depending upon the exact circumstances, EEA nationals, and members of their family, who are considered to pose a threat to national security, who have engaged in unacceptable behaviour or who have committed public order or serious criminal offences may fall to be excluded on the grounds of public policy or public security.

Internet: Terrorism

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his most recent assessment is of the extent of use of cyberspace by terrorist and violent extremists in the UK.

David Hanson: A number of Government Departments and Agencies are involved in assessing terrorist use of cyber-space, in particular terrorist use of the internet. By their nature such assessments are classified. The recently published Cyber Security Strategy provides an unclassified summary of Government's collective assessment of such activities and of the current threat:
	Terrorists and violent extremists use cyber space for communication, co-ordination, propaganda, fundraising, radicalisation, and recruitment, providing them with an unprecedented opportunity to access a wider global community. While we expect terrorist groups to continue to favour high-profile conventional operations over cyber attacks, we must be vigilant against any future increase in capability that might be directed against UK interests at home and overseas.
	The UK's revised strategy for countering international terrorism - CONTEST -published in March this year provides further analysis of the impact which the advancements in technology have had on terrorist activities alongside our understanding of the current use of the internet by terrorist groups, including the increases in the number of websites related to terrorist groups or supporting violent extremism.

Mass Media

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what reports he has received from the police on the extent to which telephone taps undertaken on behalf of media organisations are made in accordance with legislation; who is responsible for investigating allegations of illegal telephone tapping on behalf of media organisations; what discussions he has had with media organisations on the appropriate use of surveillance techniques in the public interest; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: We have received no reports from the police on the extent of the interception of telephone communication on behalf of media organisations. The police are responsible for investigating allegations of unlawful interception under section 1 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. The Home Office has not had any discussions with media organisations on the appropriate use of surveillance techniques in the public interest. However, following the convictions of Mr. Clive Goodman and Mr. Glen Mulcaire in 2007 for unlawfully intercepting communications, the Press Complaints Commission carried out a review of events and issued new guidelines in May 2007 on subterfuge and news-gathering.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to reply to the letter of 7 April 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. S. Rasoul.

Alan Johnson: I replied to my right hon. Friend on 20 July.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to reply to the letter to his predecessor of 9 May 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Ms R Hughes.

Alan Johnson: My hon. Friend the Member for Hackney, South and Shoreditch (Meg Hillier) replied on 17 March.

Members: Correspondence

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  when the visa enquiry office of the Islamabad consulate plans to reply to the hon. Member for Edinburgh West's correspondence of 17 April, 7 May and 20 May 2009, on Mr Abdul Rehman;
	(2)  when the visa enquiry office of the Islamabad consulate plans to reply to the hon. Member for Edinburgh West's correspondence of 17 April, 7 May and 20 May 2009, on Mr Abdul Rehman.

Phil Woolas: Our visa Section in Islamabad has no record of the correspondence in question from the hon. Member about Mr. Abdul Rehman. An Entry Clearance Manager has written separately to the hon. Member to explain the position regarding Mr. Rehman's visa application.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  when he plans to reply to the letter to the Minister of State of 19 May 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. R. Cawley;
	(2)  when he plans to reply to the letter to his Department of 19 May 2009 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. R. Crawley.

Alan Johnson: I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 20 July 2009.

Metal: Theft

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to reduce levels of theft of metal in England and Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Government take the issue of metal theft seriously, and recognise that it has a detrimental effect on the national infrastructure, affecting service providers, and both individuals and whole communities. It can also pose a serious health risk to offenders.
	Local agencies are well placed with the necessary tools and powers to tackle metal theft where this is a issue locally. For example, in Avon and Somerset, police and partners initiated Operation Fragment when metal theft was discovered to be a problem. This successful operation tackled metal theft through crime prevention measures, increased publicity, a focus on suspicious vehicles and offenders and working with the scrap metal dealers in the area.
	The Home Office part funded a dedicated unit to tackle metal theft, headed by British Transport police. This ran from January to June 2009 and we are assessing the impact of this unit and considering how to apply this learning more widely.
	Government officials, including from the Home Office, are also on the Association of Chief Police Officers-led steering group tackling metal theft, which meets regularly to discuss the strategies to tackle metal theft and any emerging issues. This includes representatives from police as well as from industries most affected by metal theft.

Minister for Identity

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what temporary arrangements have been made to cover the responsibilities of the Minister for Identity.

Alan Johnson: I refer my right hon. Friend to the evidence I gave before the Home Affairs Select Committee, of which he chairs, on Tuesday 14 July. The specific answer is in relation to question number 35.

National Police Improvement Agency: Pay

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much was paid in bonuses to  (a) directors,  (b) senior managers,  (c) specialist and delivery managers and  (d) executive support and administration staff in the National Policing Improvement Agency in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: The national policing improvement agency was established by statute on 1 April 2007. Data in respect of bonuses paid since that date to the categories of staff listed are given in the following table.
	
		
			  Bonuses paid within NPIA 
			   2007-08  2008-09  2009-10( 1)  Total 
			 Directors-NPIA CEO and chief officers 79,000 82,000 Pending 161,000 
			 Senior managers-NPIA grade 4A to 4B 5,000 605 1,500 7,105 
			 Specialist and delivery managers-NPIA grades 2B to 3B 8,104 14,104 4,000 26,208 
			 Executive support and administration staff-all other grades 13,003 7,291 7,250 27,544 
			 Total 105,107 104,000 12,750 221,857 
			 (1) As at 22 June 2009

National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department has provided to the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse in each of the last five years.

Alan Campbell: The Home Office has provided funding to the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse (NTA) for the period 2004-05 to 2008-09 as shown in the table:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2004-05 1,082,000 
			 2005-06 142,000 
			 2006-07 2,486,000 
			 2007-08 2,371,000 
			 2008-09 2,945,000 
			  Source: Home Office Accounting System 
		
	
	In addition, in 2005-06 a budget transfer of £1,333,000 was made to the Department of Health through the Supplementary Estimates to meet Drug Interventions Programme related costs that fell to the NTA.

Offences Against Children

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with  (a) his EU counterparts and  (b) other overseas counterparts on the establishment of a single list of websites found to be displaying images of child abuse.

Alan Campbell: The Government fully support work funded by the EU to develop and refine the data on websites collected by reporting hotlines. This will develop a more accurate list of websites containing illegal images of child sexual abuse. The Government fully support this and other work being taken forward by the EU to protect children online. The Government and law enforcement agencies work closely with their counterparts outside the EU to tackle such websites.

Offenders: Deportation

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what the maximum sum payable in support under the Facilitated Returns Scheme is;
	(2)  how much has been spent in support under the Facilitated Returns Scheme in each year since its inception;
	(3)  how many people removed from the UK under the Early Removal Scheme have been returned to prison in England and Wales in each of the last three years;
	(4)  how many people have been returned under the Facilitated Returns Scheme in each of the last three years.

Phil Woolas: The Facilitated Returns Scheme was launched in October 2006 as an incentive to persuade foreign prisoners to return voluntarily to their own country. The scheme offers a package of reintegration assistance to the individual; however, no financial incentives are offered. The only cash the individual receives is the standard £46 discharge grant provided to all prisoners, including British nationals. The level of assistance offered is variable and is dependant upon the individual circumstances of each case. Assistance is provided up to a maximum of £5,000 for serving foreign criminals and £3,000 for those who have completed their sentence. Only half of those who are removed under the provisions of the scheme receive reintegration assistance once they return to their country. Once removed from the UK under the scheme's provisions, they are excluded from the UK. As such it is only possible to benefit from the scheme once.
	The chief executive of the UK Border Agency has written to the Home Affairs Select Committee on a regular basis in order to provide all of the most robust and accurate information on foreign national prisoners and deportation, including the successes seen through the use of the Facilitated Returns Scheme. In her letter of 23 July 2008 she advised that the scheme, accounted for around 25 per cent. of all foreign prisoner removals in 2007. This has generated significant savings and has resulted in nearly 1,800 foreign prisoners being removed from the UK. In the first year of the scheme (October 2006 to October 2007) the agency spent around £350,000, inclusive of administrative costs. For the same period around 880 removals were made under the scheme which generated considerable savings in detention costs alone.
	Since April 2008, the Early Removals Scheme was extended to enable eligible prisoners to be removed up to 270 days before their normal release date. It was previously 135 days. The information relating to those removed from the UK and who have been returned to prison is not held centrally. In order to obtain the information it would be necessary to examine individual case files at a disproportionate cost.
	Copies of her letters are available in the Library of the House. The chief executive will continue to write to the Committee with further updates on the scheme and other data on the deportation of foreign national prisoners.

Offenders: Deportation

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign nationals who  (a) were suspected of being involved in terrorist-related activity and  (b) have completed terrorist-related prison sentences have been deported to their country of origin by the UK Border Agency since the Agency commenced operations.

Phil Woolas: Details of the numbers of people who have completed prison sentences for a terrorist-related offence, or who have been suspected of being involved in terrorist-related activity, and who have subsequently been deported are not available.

Official Residences

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 9 March 2009,  Official Report, column 78W, on official residences, how much the right hon. Member for Sheffield, Brightside paid to cover rent at South Eaton Place; what period the payment covered; and what the estimated market rental value of the property was for that period.

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 9 March 2009,  Official Report, column 78W, on official residences, how much the right hon. Member for Sheffield, Brightside paid to cover rent at South Eaton Place; what period the payment covered; and what the estimated market rental value of the property was for the period.

Phil Woolas: South Eaton Place has been made available to all Home Secretaries since the Department procured its use. No rent has ever been charged. The payment referred to in the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 9 March 2009,  Official Report, column 78W, related to council tax and utility bills.

Passports: Forgery

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fake British passports  (a) containing and  (b) not containing biometric information have been recovered by (i) the police, (ii) the UK Border Agency and (iii) HM Revenue and Customs in each of the last five years.

Alan Johnson: The lead role in protecting the United Kingdom from the use of false travel documentation is taken by the UK Border Agency Intelligence Directorate's National Document Fraud Unit (NDFU). As part of this role, the NDFU compiles statistics on all false identity documents used for international travel and detected by the UK Border Agency (and its predecessors). Current statistical collection methods do not allow for a distinction between biometric passports and non-biometric passports.
	On this basis, the following table details the detections of false UK passports encountered by the UK Border Agency (and its predecessors). These figures do not constitute part of National Statistics as they are based on internal management information. The information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols, should be treated as provisional and is subject to change.
	
		
			   Detections 
			 2004 985 
			 2005 641 
			 2006 409 
			 2007 398 
			 2008 312 
			 Total 2,705

Police National Intelligence and Co-ordination Centre

David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department has allocated to the Police National Intelligence and Co-ordination Centre in each year since its establishment; and how many staff the centre has employed in each such year.

David Hanson: The Police National Information and Co-ordination Centre (PNICC) was set up in 2003 by the Association of Chief Police Officers in order to coordinate the national mobilisation of police resources. Funding for PNICC is provided via contributions from police authorities rather than directly from the Home Office. This funding provides for three permanent PNICC staff and associated costs. Additional staff are seconded to PNICC to meet specific operational requirements, as required.

Police Pledge Publicity Campaign: Finance

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total budget for marketing, public relations, communications and advertising is for the 2009 police pledge publicity campaign.

David Hanson: The Home Office ran a campaign in the spring of 2009 to raise awareness and understanding of the policing pledge, a set of promises to residents about the service they can expect from their local police.
	The media spend on the advertising and marketing of the policing pledge in England and Wales in the 2008-09 financial year was £3,427,521.00.

Police: Gwent

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers were employed in Gwent in  (a) 1997-98 and  (b) 2008-09.

David Hanson: There were 1,233 police officers in Gwent constabulary as at 31 March 1998.
	The latest available information is at 30 September 2008, when there were 1,470 police officers in Gwent constabulary.
	These figures are calculated on a full-time equivalent basis.
	These and other related data are published annually as part of the annual Police Service Strength Home Office Statistical Bulletin. The latest bulletin can be found at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/policeorg1.html
	and bulletins for this and previous years are deposited in the Library of the House.
	31 March 2009 figures are due to be published on 23 July 2009 on the same webpage.

Police: Journalists

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many reports of incidents of police officers selling to journalists information obtained through their official duties his Department has received in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Home Office does not hold records of any such reports. Any allegation of the selling of information is likely to be investigated and dealt with under the police discipline procedures and/or the criminal law depending on the circumstances of the case.

Police: North Yorkshire

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many full-time equivalent  (a) police officers,  (b) police community support officers and  (c) police civilian staff were employed by North Yorkshire police force on the latest date for which figures are available.

David Hanson: The requested data were published within the Police Service Strength England and Wales, 30 September 2008, Statistical Bulletin and are available at the following weblink:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/policeorg1.html
	A copy of this publication has also been deposited in the House of Commons Library.
	Annual 30 September figures are provided as interim figures to the more detailed 30 March figures which can also be found at the above link. 30 March 2009 figures are due to be published on 23 July 2009 on the same webpage.

Police: Torfaen

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) police officers and  (b) police community support officers are employed in Torfaen.

David Hanson: Police personnel data are not available by parliamentary constituency. Information for Gwent along with basic command unit (BCU) data for police officers and police community support officers (PCSOs) as at 31 March 2008 are provided in the tables.
	
		
			  Police officer strength by basic command unit, Gwent, 31 March 2008( 1) 
			  Full-time equivalents 
			  Police force  BCU  Police officers 
			 Gwent Caerphilly and Blaenau Gwent 469 
			  Newport 306 
			  Pontypool 300 
			  Central Services 412 
			 Total  1,487 
			 (1 )These figures are based on full-time equivalents that have been rounded to the nearest whole number, due to rounding there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of constituent items. Figures include those officers on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. 
		
	
	
		
			  Police community support officer strength by basic command unit, Gwent, 31 March 2008( 1) 
			  Full-time equivalents 
			  Police force  BCU  Police community support officers 
			 Gwent Caerphilly and Blaenau Gwent 42 
			  Newport 50 
			  Pontypool 47 
			  Central Services 0 
			 Total  139 
			 (1) These figures are based on full-time equivalents that have been rounded to the nearest whole number, due to rounding there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of constituent items. Figures include those officers on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave.

Prisoners: Foreigners

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign prisoners released from a mandatory life sentence in  (a) 2007 and  (b) 2008 were deported or removed.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only by examination of individual files at disproportionate cost.
	The UK Border Agency continues to make considerable progress in delivering an effective deportation system. In 2008 we deported or removed nearly 5,400 foreign criminals, including 50 people found guilty of murder, attempted murder or causing death, around 260 sex offenders and 1,600 drug offenders.
	The Chief Executive at the UK Border Agency has regularly written to the Home Affairs Select Committee in order to provide them with the most robust and accurate information available relating to foreign national prisoners. Copies of these letters are available in the Library of the House.

Right of Abode: European Economic Area

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average length of time taken to process an application for an EEA residence permit was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: The time taken to process applications will depend on the type of application made and how it is submitted. There is currently a backlog of applications, and UK Border Agency is taking steps to address this situation as soon as possible. UKBA aims to be operating back within service standards from the beginning of December 2009.

Road Traffic Offences

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) males and  (b) females aged (i) between 17 and 24 years, (ii) between 25 and 30 years, (iii) between 31 and 35 years, (iv) between 36 and 40 years and (v) over 40 years have been (A) charged with and (B) convicted of failing to comply with an instruction given by a traffic signal in each year since 1997.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 25 June 2009
	Information on prosecutions and convictions for selected motoring offences covering the years 1997 to 2007, latest available, can be found in tables 1 and 2 as follows:
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of males and females proceeded against at magistrates courts for certain motoring offences, by sex and age group, England and Wales, 1997 to 2007( 1, 2, 3) 
			1997 prosecutions  1998 prosecutions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 1,655 8,447 1,035 764 1,892 13,804 266 1,507 163 131 393 2,460 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 537 2,445 409 322 1,110 4,823 605 2,073 584 433 1,538 5,233 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 572 2,302 252 188 434 3,760 498 2,068 264 180 412 3,433 
			   
			  Females  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 266 *1,507 163 131 *393 2,460 263 1,008 177 135 330 *1,914 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 190 620 131 100 271 1,312 195 544 177 147 430 *1,493 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 47 *328 *37 *23 *59 494 44 277 33 29 65 *449 
		
	
	
		
			1999  prosecutions  2000  prosecutions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 1,491 5,283 1,079 818 1,972 10,661 1,297 4,561 900 769 1,763 9,306 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 550 1,561 636 561 1,567 4,875 697 2,505 1,106 974 3,116 8,402 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 545 1,671 367 248 628 3,476 454 1,316 319 223 511 2,846 
			   
			  Females  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 223 818 143 142 355 1,681 179 805 124 132 285 1,525 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 156 424 177 132 323 1,213 226 670 303 244 527 1,970 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 63 257 68 51 144 585 53 195 53 44 100 445 
		
	
	
		
			2001  prosecutions  2002  prosecutions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 1,124 3,599 788 705 1,456 7,682 1,045 3,378 717 627 1,468 7,252 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 735 2,063 1,145 1,081 3,234 8,260 653 2,345 821 685 2,040 6,547 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 439 1,271 260 185 348 2,538 453 1,560 202 159 396 2,805 
			   
			  Females  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 148 598 134 121 245 1,246 117 624 142 104 241 1,228 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 227 597 294 267 615 2,000 193 681 228 217 487 1,808 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 33 199 31 30 63 357 48 284 46 33 63 474 
		
	
	
		
			2003  prosecutions  2004  prosecutions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 1,155 3,060 872 774 1,849 7,724 1,029 2,819 709 640 1,564 6,768 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 563 1,879 618 594 1,649 5,306 429 1,278 638 596 1,823 4,764 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 602 1,426 302 243 455 3,092 1,212 1,747 763 596 1,547 5,968 
			   
			  Females  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 179 515 161 164 389 1,408 132 515 119 113 243 1,122 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 144 537 169 141 361 1,352 111 248 164 165 320 1,008 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 32 217 50 42 101 443 146 332 143 121 384 1,129 
		
	
	
		
			2005  prosecutions  2006  prosecutions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 687 2,393 519 443 1,209 5,262 635 2,192 510 469 1,292 5,108 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 378 1,102 493 448 1,298 3,720 576 2,490 644 582 1,851 6,144 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 1,288 2,042 871 802 1,895 7,018 1,364 1,955 877 799 2,110 7,174 
			   
			  Females  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 107 347 94 80 188 827 111 378 104 84 233 911 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 107 253 120 101 268 849 156 624 179 172 409 1,540 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 192 405 175 172 377 1,322 220 460 194 210 503 1,588 
		
	
	
		
			2007  prosecutions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 615 2,118 449 397 1,206 4,792 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 760 3,495 774 826 2,339 8,195 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 1,260 1,935 817 812 2,091 6,972 
			 
			  Females
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 105 354 69 64 216 808 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 201 771 181 203 496 1,852 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 263 468 186 211 541 1,672 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2 : Number of males and  females  found guilty at all  courts for certain motoring offences, by sex and age group, England and Wales, 1997 to 2007( 1, 2, 3) 
			1997  convictions  1998  convictions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 1,502 7,601 907 669 1,689 12,375 1,487 5,794 1,032 717 1,827 10,864 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 507 2,290 386 313 1,071 4,567 549 1,905 526 397 1,350 4,727 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 481 1,996 213 163 377 3,236 408 1,803 213 156 357 2,943 
			   
			  Females  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 244 1,392 150 121 374 2,281 241 935 167 125 308 1,777 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 184 585 125 93 260 1,247 182 488 157 128 389 1,344 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 45 295 35 19 54 448 41 237 33 24 61 396 
		
	
	
		
			1999  convictions  2000  convictions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 1,341 4,580 944 714 1,729 9,324 1,153 4,073 787 682 1,540 8,247 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 497 1,421 579 503 1,348 4,348 672 2,287 1,077 947 3,031 8,018 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 429 1,429 303 217 527 2,912 341 1,097 259 184 401 2,290 
			   
			  Females  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 212 750 131 129 327 1,549 165 747 117 122 250 1,401 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 142 375 161 123 279 1,081 217 629 295 238 522 1,901 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 55 232 60 47 129 525 43 167 46 37 74 367 
		
	
	
		
			2001  convictions  2002  convictions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 974 3,185 694 608 1,266 6,735 919 3,054 629 548 1,299 6,462 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 702 1,910 1,105 1,038 3,137 7,894 608 2,122 779 648 1,954 6,114 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 316 1,081 224 157 293 2,083 333 1,344 174 125 341 2,328 
			   
			  Females  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 133 546 127 113 228 1,147 111 574 134 95 222 1,136 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 217 560 283 257 602 1,919 184 628 225 207 471 1,716 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 32 176 27 29 53 318 43 262 41 29 58 433 
		
	
	
		
			2003 convictions  2004 convictions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 996 2,687 755 691 1,650 6,791 831 2,477 612 563 1,338 5,827 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 528 1,732 583 547 1,557 4,949 394 1,135 598 546 1,685 4,358 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 359 1,175 219 187 353 2,316 934 1,451 650 522 1,388 5,000 
			   
			  Females  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 156 477 151 145 349 1,278 115 470 111 97 215 1,008 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 135 494 158 132 344 1,263 105 224 155 158 301 943 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 25 192 39 33 86 376 136 305 131 112 362 1,048 
		
	
	
		
			2005 convictions  2006 convictions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 605 2,121 454 375 1,058 4,621 566 1,946 465 419 1,142 4,547 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 347 986 446 417 1,170 3,367 523 1,920 596 540 1,675 5,254 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 1,031 1,692 770 706 1,724 5,997 1,134 1,717 779 707 1,882 6,267 
			   
			  Females  
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 97 324 84 72 180 757 97 349 96 80 216 839 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 100 230 113 94 254 791 147 505 170 156 374 1,352 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 172 383 166 159 354 1,235 207 420 189 199 464 1,480 
		
	
	
		
			2007  convictions 
			  Offence description  Principal statute(s)  17-24  25-30  31-35  36-40  41 and over  All ages 
			  Males
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 548 1,908 393 358 1,086 4,300 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 686 2,505 704 747 2,123 6,766 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 1,052 1,700 747 731 1,927 6,187 
			 
			  Females
			 Failure to comply with signals/signs-not detected by camera Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1) 100 328 66 60 205 759 
			 Offences detected by camera devices Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.36 (1) 188 616 167 184 452 1,607 
			 Other offences of neglecting traffic directions Road Traffic Act 1988 Sec.35 (1)  (2), 36(1)  163 (3) 243 440 178 196 511 1,571 
			 (1) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) All ages column includes the age group 10 to 16.  Source: Court proceedings database, Criminal Justice Evidence and Analysis, Office for Criminal Justice Reform, Ministry of Justice

Roads: Closures

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reason the Metropolitan Police closed Finchley road in London on 9 July 2009; on whose authority; and what efforts were made to notify motorists of the closure in order to avoid unnecessary congestion.

David Hanson: The decision to close a road is an operational matter for the police. On this occasion, the Metropolitan police closed the road following a serious road traffic collision. The closure was necessary to ensure the safety of the public, to cut open the vehicles so that the drivers and passengers could be removed, to facilitate treatment for the injured and the removal of four casualties by the London ambulance service, and to carry out an investigation into the cause of the collision.
	Transport for London were notified immediately of the closure and co-ordinated relevant announcements These which included local radio traffic updates to provide advance information of the closure and advice for motorists so that they could seek alternative routes as far in advance of the accident scene as possible.

Sexual Offences

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the detection rate has been for cases of  (a) rape and  (b) sexual assault in each police force area in each year since 1997.

Alan Johnson: The available information is given in the tables.
	It should be noted that non-sanction detections that contribute to the percentage change in total detection rates have fallen in recent years reflecting a significant shift by many police forces away from recording detections of crime where no further action is taken. For this reason overall detection rates over time are not fully comparable. From 1 April 2007 the rules governing recording of non-sanction detections were revised to reduce the scope within which they can be claimed to a very limited set of circumstance. There are other changes affecting trends in detection rates that are discussed in section 3.5 of Volume two of Crime in England and Wales 2008-09, a copy of which has been deposited in the Library of the House.
	Detection rates are a ratio of crime detected in a period to crimes recorded in a period. They are not based on tracking whether individual crimes recorded in a period have eventually been detected.
	
		
			  Table 1 Detection rates for offences of rape and  sexual assault:  2000-01  to  2001-02( 1) 
			   2000-01  2001-02 
			  Police force area  Rape  Sexual assault  Rape  Sexual assault 
			 Avon and Somerset 43 48 27 32 
			 Bedfordshire 33 54 25 42 
			 British Transport Police n/a n/a n/a  
			 Cambridgeshire 50 59 46 51 
			 Cheshire 85 84 81 76 
			 Cleveland 59 68 65 69 
			 Cumbria 70 85 74 69 
			 Derbyshire 38 50 39 59 
			 Devon and Cornwall 77 81 49 59 
			 Dorset 36 52 39 48 
			 Durham n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 Dyfed-Powys 108 92 76 94 
			 Essex 50 55 33 51 
			 Gloucestershire 88 62 57 61 
			 Greater Manchester 58 59 55 54 
			 Gwent 98 90 93 89 
			 Hampshire n/a n/a 53 56 
			 Hertfordshire 66 65 62 75 
			 Humberside 36 39 33 37 
			 Kent 57 55 56 56 
			 Lancashire 54 59 47 47 
			 Leicestershire n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			 Lincolnshire 67 70 50 66 
			 London, City of 50 29 22 68 
			 Merseyside 74 66 53 54 
			 Metropolitan Police 24 28 27 26 
			 Norfolk 35 48 36 48 
			 Northamptonshire 71 80 64 62 
			 Northumbria 48 54 43 49 
			 North Wales 64 74 35 56 
			 North Yorkshire 75 73 59 64 
			 Nottinghamshire 50 41 36 42 
			 South Wales 88 71 90 75 
			 South Yorkshire n/a n/a 72 60 
			 Staffordshire 38 39 35 33 
			 Suffolk 35 57 30 51 
			 Surrey 28 41 42 40 
			 Sussex 34 47 35 48 
			 Thames Valley 26 48 32 42 
			 Warwickshire 52 46 30 57 
			 West Mercia 57 55 44 50 
			 West Midlands 54 51 45 51 
			 West Yorkshire n/a n/a 55 62 
			 Wiltshire 32 36 46 47 
			 England and Wales(2,3) 42 47 41 45 
			 n/a = Not available. (1) The data in this table is prior to the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not direct comparable with those for later years. (2) For 2000-01 excludes British Transport Police, Durham, Hampshire, Leicestershire, South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire. (3) For 2001-02 excludes British Transport Police. Durham and Leicestershire.  Note: Offences detected in any given year may have been initially recorded in a previous year and for this reason some percentages may exceed 100. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Detection rates for offences of rape and sexual assault: 2002-03 to 2008-09( 1) 
			   2002 - 03  2003- 04  2004- 05  2005- 06  2006- 07  2007 - 08  2008 - 09 
			  Police force area  Rape  Sexual assault  Rape  Sexual assault  Rape  Sexual assault  Rape  Sexual assault  Rape  Sexual assault  Rape  Sexual assault  Rape  Sexual assault 
			 Avon and Somerset 22 26 21 26 18 19 22 24 20 22 25 23 21 23 
			 Bedfordshire 29 35 21 25 23 38 23 25 15 37 18 20 16 26 
			 British Transport Police 73 27 50 26 21 22 45 29 37 27 18 30 23 29 
			 Cambridgeshire 29 32 15 30 21 30 22 30 15 30 19 23 23 33 
			 Cheshire 48 55 29 47 28 43 28 39 30 36 31 37 26 38 
			 Cleveland 41 44 31 41 22 40 38 40 34 35 30 41 37 40 
			 Cumbria 64 58 30 48 30 41 36 49 47 42 25 43 21 42 
			 Derbyshire 35 41 33 43 28 40 30 30 21 30 28 28 23 27 
			 Devon and Cornwall 30 42 19 35 24 34 18 32 20 33 17 28 19 31 
			 Dorset 25 44 17 27 16 35 17 30 27 28 18 22 11 30 
			 Durham 68 54 71 71 60 63 26 41 43 43 43 47 44 47 
			 Dyfed-Powys 91 89 25 48 31 39 18 42 28 38 20 32 31 49 
			 Essex 32 41 29 39 27 41 25 33 25 40 19 32 19 29 
			 Gloucestershire 31 42 28 35 28 34 19 31 21 34 30 26 23 34 
			 Greater Manchester 46 49 32 40 30 29 31 37 31 35 38 25 31 26 
			 Gwent 80 80 78 80 51 60 40 54 36 35 20 25 38 29 
			 Hampshire 41 53 34 39 25 37 21 33 19 27 21 31 21 29 
			 Hertfordshire 50 50 50 54 38 50 41 42 28 35 22 39 17 36 
			 Humberside 23 38 20 31 19 33 23 35 24 29 22 33 28 31 
			 Kent 38 44 27 38 22 32 21 31 23 26 26 30 22 35 
			 Lancashire 52 54 35 41 37 43 35 44 37 42 30 44 36 42 
			 Leicestershire 26 32 28 32 23 31 18 33 20 26 12 27 17 28 
			 Lincolnshire 40 32 28 36 31 41 21 38 24 32 17 30 25 30 
			 London, City of 100 41 - 28 - 52 - 43 - 33 - 19 100 59 
			 Merseyside 47 52 43 45 35 44 24 41 28 42 22 33 29 34 
			 Metropolitan Police 29 25 33 24 38 26 36 27 34 20 34 21 34 28 
			 Norfolk 24 33 18 42 22 35 23 37 24 36 21 35 36 39 
			 Northamptonshire 53 52 37 55 32 50 33 37 25 36 21 23 19 36 
			 Northumbria 36 46 30 43 24 36 29 44 33 45 29 39 34 41 
			 North Wales 26 34 29 39 27 42 25 47 16 39 17 34 18 36 
			 North Yorkshire 43 55 41 51 35 48 29 50 41 44 26 40 27 35 
			 Nottinghamshire 34 39 27 36 35 38 27 38 31 38 25 30 19 29 
			 South Wales 62 56 53 49 59 40 29 36 28 30 42 37 39 36 
			 South Yorkshire 40 42 38 42 29 37 24 34 27 28 34 30 38 33 
			 Staffordshire 40 48 32 49 30 45 26 37 24 35 21 29 24 27 
			 Suffolk 30 51 26 35 19 31 24 38 20 43 19 33 16 34 
			 Surrey 32 40 35 39 24 40 32 38 29 44 24 39 12 22 
			 Sussex 26 39 24 39 14 32 20 34 15 36 21 30 19 29 
			 Thames Valley 27 32 18 33 24 33 22 32 19 30 19 23 18 21 
			 Warwickshire 27 45 19 30 25 36 19 40 16 31 22 30 28 27 
			 West Mercia 37 46 35 48 29 43 27 48 20 35 22 31 23 32 
			 West Midlands 41 36 32 32 26 27 30 29 23 27 25 27 30 34 
			 West Yorkshire 42 44 31 33 25 34 25 22 19 32 24 25 22 23 
			 Wiltshire 37 40 41 37 32 40 33 38 18 33 23 28 35 31 
			
			 England and Wales 36 39 31 36 29 34 27 34 26 31 26 29 26 30 
			 (1) The data in this table takes account of the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for earlier years.  Note: Offences detected in any given year may have been initially recorded in a previous year and for this reason some percentages may exceed 100.

Terrorism: Afghanistan

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of known terrorist plots in the United Kingdom have a connection with Afghanistan; and what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on the matter.

David Hanson: holding answer 16 July 2009
	It is the long held policy of successive Governments not to comment on ongoing investigations. As a member of Ministerial Committee on National Security, International Relations and Development (NSID), the Home Secretary regularly discusses the Government's policies on Afghanistan and Pakistan with the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.

Terrorism: Afghanistan

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of known terrorist plots in the United Kingdom have a connection with Helmand province.

David Hanson: holding answer 16 July 2009
	It is the long held policy of successive Governments not to comment on ongoing investigations.

Travel: Personal Records

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 15 May 2009,  Official Report, column 1092W, on travel: personal records, what steps his Department plans to take to ensure the collection of advance passenger data on domestic air and sea journeys will focus only on crossings between Great Britain and Northern Ireland;
	(2)  when he plans to decide on whether to carry out a formal consultation on his Department's proposals to collect advance passenger data in respect of domestic air and sea journeys; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The Government are currently considering whether to hold a public consultation. Should we decide to proceed after the consultation a statutory instrument necessary to implement the power under section 14 of the Police and Justice Act 2006 would specify that the data collection would apply only to routes between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

UK Border Agency: Correspondence

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Chief Executive of the UK Border Agency plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Hemel Hempstead dated 5 January 2009 on asylum seekers from Zimbabwe.

Phil Woolas: The chief executive of the UK Border Agency wrote to the hon. Member on 20 July.

Vetting: Standards

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what proportion of criminal record certificates provided by the Criminal Records Bureau in each of the last three years were enhanced criminal records certificates.

David Hanson: The number of enhanced disclosures issued by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) in each of the last three years is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Financial year  Number of enhanced disclosures issued 
			 2006/07 2,948,734 
			 2007/08 3,028,659 
			 2008/09 3,457,410 
		
	
	Approximately nine out of every 10 disclosure applications received by the CRB are for enhanced disclosures.

Vetting: Standards

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average time taken by the Criminal Records Bureau to process a request for  (a) a criminal record certificate and  (b) an enhanced criminal record certificate was in the latest period for which figures are available.

David Hanson: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer of 29 June 2009,  Official Report, columns 79-80W.

Visas: Finance

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost to his Department was of issuing  (a) short- and  (b) long-term visitor visas in each country in each year since 2000.

Alan Johnson: The cost to my Department of issuing individual types of visa in each country is not available. To obtain the requested information would be at disproportionate cost.
	Parliament agrees the fee for visit visas, most recently in the Immigration and Nationality (Cost Recovery Fees) Regulations 2009.

Visas: Finance

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what revenue has been collected from  (a) short- and  (b) long-term visitor visa applicants from each country in each year since 2000.

Alan Johnson: The following table shows revenue collected from  (a) short and  (b) long-term visitor visa applications, from each country in each year since 2004. Reliable data are not available before 2004.
	
		
			  Visit visa income estimates FY 2004 -98 
			  £ 
			   FY 2004  FY 2005  FY 2006  FY 2007  FY 2008 
			  Country  LTV  STV  LTV  STV  LTV  STV  LTV  STV  LTV  STV 
			 Albania 11,000 294,200 29,600 488,100 42,200 450,300 75,600 398,000 103,400 394,000 
			 Algeria 150,800 192,200 148,700 286,400 147,700 340,900 256,100 610,200 218,300 539,300 
			 Angola 22,600 94,600 31,700 131,300 29,900 147,800 64,500 217,500 38,000 173,600 
			 Argentina 2,700 3,400 3,500 5,400 3,200 9,200 3,600 8,800 0 0 
			 Armenia 8,500 31,200 9,100 51,400 10,500 63,000 23,200 87,500 26,000 104,600 
			 Australia 5,200 74,000 11,400 115,400 9,200 120,900 18,600 156,900 35,200 173,600 
			 Austria 39,400 61,700 46,600 82,900 27,000 89,000 37,900 92,000 0 100 
			 Azerbaijan 39,400 108,700 64,100 161,900 94,600 165,100 192,600 235,600 216,100 244,900 
			 Bahrain 165,300 210,100 256,000 279,700 321,300 289,700 491,900 425,700 804,200 393,000 
			 Bangladesh 202,500 701,400 348,000 955,600 367,400 1,147,600 533,100 1,422,900 599,300 1,108,800 
			 Barbados 7,600 19,700 12,500 23,000 23,500 28,000 33,500 38,100 14,300 8,000 
			 Belarus 25,300 258,700 30,900 374,700 35,900 426,300 69,300 516,900 98,100 555,100 
			 Belgium 52,000 140,200 89,900 213,200 86,600 233,200 199,300 248,600 0 0 
			 Bolivia 300 3,100 300 3,100 300 5,500 400 6,000 0 0 
			 Bosnia and Herzegovina 17,800 90,000 26,100 135,900 31,000 124,200 59,300 170,000 58,600 199,300 
			 Botswana 6,300 35,400 9,600 46,800 8,300 46,700 10,700 57,500 0 600 
			 Brazil 4,800 23,200 8,100 31,600 7,200 39,700 9,200 39,100 17,000 36,900 
			 Brunei 3,200 16,300 5,700 46,000 7,500 35,300 11,700 16,200 9,000 19,400 
			 Bulgaria 211,900 439,700 300,100 784,800 149,900 664,700 7,500 21,900 2,800 9,000 
			 Burma 2,400 37,300 5,800 54,500 8,100 61,900 12,400 86,100 18,400 81,000 
			 Cameroon 20,800 123,900 27,500 151,700 23,500 142,700 54,000 186,700 18,200 77,100 
			 Canada 114,200 320,400 165,200 424,900 190,800 380,900 190,100 509,900 231,800 478,200 
			 Chile 1,700 25,300 2,300 17,000 3,900 13,800 7,500 7,400 8,400 4,500 
			 China 156,500 3,981,100 322,500 5,353,100 470,800 6,206,900 879,900 8,712,800 1,187,400 7,096,500 
			 Colombia 49,700 370,500 59,200 549,900 70,300 584,900 182,000 708,300 270,000 683,300 
			 Congo (Dem. Rep.) 17,100 120,000 25,200 167,900 33,000 138,400 90,700 156,600 0 0 
			 Croatia 75,200 453,200 93,900 558,200 1,900 20,400 4,800 35,600 3,000 20,300 
			 Cuba 3,400 109,300 2,900 138,300 2,900 109,600 5,700 100,900 9,000 88,800 
			 Cyprus 17,500 137,300 30,900 208,100 30,500 318,300 56,100 283,300 52,100 243,300 
			 Czech Republic 10,400 48,200 9,900 57,200 14,800 143,100 42,100 134,700 1,500 3,000 
			 Denmark 19,400 92,300 19,600 127,400 26,900 136,700 36,900 165,100 47,200 186,600 
			 Dominican Republic 6,100 38,600 3,900 70,600 5,700 59,300 17,000 84,800 0 0 
			 Ecuador 9,600 70,400 12,700 96,000 13,400 117,400 34,300 125,300 58,000 75,600 
			 Egypt 185,800 716,800 347,700 888,200 429,300 952,600 948,400 1,238,100 1,536,200 1,573,500 
			 Eritrea 1,200 20,200 1,200 20,500 700 5,400 400 1,400 200 900 
			 Estonia 800 18,300 1,600 32,700 2,100 43,800 2,500 50,600 0 0 
			 Ethiopia 45,900 123,100 53,700 135,800 33,600 133,800 54,200 171,200 50,700 171,600 
			 Fiji 4,100 34,200 4,500 35,800 2,700 34,300 4,400 67,300 6,700 52,500 
			 Finland 3,000 29,100 3,100 46,300 7,400 56,200 17,200 69,300 11,000 58,400 
			 France 308,600 779,800 391,900 1,002,800 478,000 1,050,800 537,700 1,070,200 700,300 1,386,600 
			 Gambia, The 61,700 175,900 96,300 226,900 75,900 209,300 117,700 256,400 125,500 253,000 
			 Georgia 23,300 86,000 31,600 142,500 47,800 159,600 100,500 205,400 158,400 212,200 
			 Germany 288,600 821,800 348,800 1,030,500 363,200 915,600 427,600 901,800 617,900 1,171,500 
			 Ghana 558,900 1,643,100 664,400 1,395,700 621,300 1,154,200 1,121,100 1,357,500 1,080,900 1,293,100 
			 Greece 8,000 36,700 12,200 85,700 15,200 59,900 28,900 92,800 31,300 66,200 
			 Guyana 14,000 76,800 22,100 127,200 21,700 129,600 38,900 124,300 0 0 
			 Hungary 11,000 56,200 12,000 83,200 11,000 72,600 24,300 62,300 7,100 15,800 
			 Iceland 1,900 6,400 3,000 9,800 2,000 11,000 3,400 10,900 2,200 9,200 
			 India 2,653,100 7,797,200 4,386,200 11,996,700 4,721,300 13,901,100 5,042,400 17,971,300 7,418,400 16,731,700 
			 Indonesia 33,100 460,900 46,500 601,300 69,000 653,300 111,600 933,300 158,200 864,000 
			 Iran 235,500 996,000 337,900 1,451,100 476,700 1,598,500 884,100 1,894,200 930,700 1,902,400 
			 Iraq 600 29,600 700 42,000 3,600 44,100 3,400 39,500 1,000 12,200 
			 Irish Republic 321,500 232,400 487,700 366,300 484,600 418,700 569,800 572,500 631,400 598,700 
			 Israel 14,200 75,600 17,300 100,000 16,600 87,400 32,200 105,200 0 300 
			 Italy 131,600 472,600 170,500 636,500 143,100 573,000 187,200 493,300 236,700 560,200 
			 Ivory Coast 20,300 98,400 0 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Jamaica 199,600 526,400 2,800 581,100 228,700 529,700 281,000 622,800 369,600 509,400 
			 Japan 9,400 90,000 100 125,200 11,600 119,600 26,600 142,300 31,100 105,500 
			 Jordan 232,700 392,900 3,300 552,300 272,100 525,300 349,500 634,200 628,200 858,900 
			 Kazakhstan 52,500 201,700 1,200 351,700 155,200 535,600 78,300 370,500 0 0 
			 Kenya 245,500 448,300 3,100 471,700 298,000 435,200 457,700 658,600 652,300 935,200 
			 Korea 2,600 14,700 100 17,800 8,100 23,900 19,300 28,400 13,900 19,800 
			 Kuwait 705,200 1,072,400 10,000 1,931,000 718,300 1,940,300 1,360,300 2,249,400 2,907,400 2,238,000 
			 Latvia 5,200 52,500 100 58,300 8,000 76,500 13,000 102,600 1,900 10,300 
			 Lebanon 180,800 210,600 2,100 330,100 166,700 274,400 343,000 456,200 404,100 383,600 
			 Libya 39,200 332,800 700 452,400 74,700 414,400 139,900 514,800 247,300 619,700 
			 Lithuania 1,000 6,500 0 7,900 2,100 11,200 2,300 15,900 0 0 
			 Luxembourg 6,100 6,500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Macedonia 14,600 195,000 300 4,800 52,600 259,400 77,300 346,500 86,100 347,000 
			 Madagascar 2,000 8,400 0 200 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Malawi 2,500 23,600 100 600 16,600 114,500 22,800 115,400 800 4,500 
			 Malaysia 9,800 34,400 200 1,100 18,100 53,200 22,000 73,100 195,600 315,300 
			 Malta 6,200 15,300 100 300 4,500 18,400 8,000 16,400 0 0 
			 Mauritius 4,700 46,700 100 1,300 6,800 76,700 15,100 79,800 16,800 70,300 
			 Mexico 5,000 29,100 100 1,000 5,000 49,000 7,300 49,900 4,100 23,200 
			 Moldova 6,800 41,600 100 1,300 8,100 65,500 19,100 73,900 29,000 71,100 
			 Mongolia 4,100 29,000 0 700 5,700 51,300 4,200 67,800 0 0 
			 Morocco 130,800 331,100 2,100 10,900 159,900 507,900 175,100 451,000 223,600 394,500 
			 Mozambique 6,100 24,900 100 600 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Namibia 1,800 7,000 0 200 1,200 3,800 0 0 0 0 
			 Nepal 13,000 115,300 200 4,400 27,300 356,400 32,900 299,900 0 0 
			 Netherlands 68,800 300,200 1,000 5,700 81,800 274,800 153,700 349,200 138,400 239,000 
			 New Zealand 800 20,300 0 700 1,400 24,100 2,900 28,000 7,300 27,700 
			 Nigeria 5,910,500 4,511,600 78,200 106,000 5,514,500 6,461,500 8,454,500 6,406,300 9,688,000 6,528,600 
			 Norway 8,300 108,700 100 2,800 15,500 137,400 24,900 151,400 43,800 180,400 
			 Oman 109,800 213,100 2,000 5,700 167,500 282,800 245,200 437,900 353,900 547,000 
			 Pakistan 1,856,900 3,847,900 32,400 95,900 3,345,400 6,225,800 4,732,900 6,474,200 3,711,900 4,041,900 
			 Panama 700 6,700 0 100 0 11,000 0 12,700 0 7,700 
			 Papua New Guinea 600 2,900 0 100 400 2,800 1,500 3,500 1,500 3,500 
			 Peru 15,800 115,700 300 3,100 19,800 188,600 61,400 193,900 0 100 
			 Philippines 100,800 568,200 1,300 17,900 156,500 882,100 239,800 1,064,900 284,600 1,042,000 
			 Poland 2,900 61,700 100 800 5,800 46,800 23,900 63,200 189,900 341,200 
			 Portugal 7,200 38,200 100 1,100 13,500 84,500 11,700 70,300 0 0 
			 Qatar 197,600 273,500 4,300 7,800 492,800 504,700 622,300 862,100 1,239,800 864,800 
			 Romania 190,200 787,000 4,100 24,500 185,900 1,151,300 22,200 53,800 26,000 62,600 
			 Russian Federation 483,300 3,650,800 9,200 108,200 785,500 6,051,800 1,846,100 7,439,000 2,707,900 7,906,200 
			 Saudi Arabia 612,900 1,046,400 12,300 28,000 1,400,400 1,572,200 2,561,200 2,365,600 4,500,400 2,689,300 
			 Senegal 9,300 61,800 200 1,900 24,300 140,500 49,200 162,000 51,100 176,400 
			 Sierra Leone 69,800 154,900 1,100 4,400 98,700 249,800 148,900 274,300 192,300 189,500 
			 Singapore 29,900 108,600 800 2,900 75,300 161,900 160,600 234,800 1,300 1,900 
			 Slovakia 300 5,300 0 200 900 9,500 0 11,500 0 100 
			 South Africa 17,200 117,200 500 3,600 52,600 201,200 90,900 550,000 459,700 1,444,500 
			 Spain 73,900 219,800 1,600 6,300 122,600 302,800 154,100 408,100 193,800 461,900 
			 Sri Lanka 119,400 682,200 2,200 17,900 231,300 999,900 291,300 1,164,400 101,800 296,600 
			 Sudan 60,000 149,400 900 4,300 95,600 300,800 204,000 346,300 1,900 17,800 
			 Swaziland 300 3,800 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Sweden 10,900 137,400 200 3,800 28,700 170,100 37,500 181,300 44,200 209,600 
			 Switzerland 86,200 299,200 1,500 8,100 138,400 400,300 215,900 474,200 254,700 501,000 
			 Syria 45,100 164,500 900 5,000 68,600 331,300 66,200 79,800 45,800 41,700 
			 Taiwan (China) 71,600 984,400 900 26,500 59,200 1,488,600 167,100 1,569,700 188,900 1,289,700 
			 Tajikistan 52,500 201,700 1,200 7,100 155,200 537,100 262,000 744,600 414,300 694,000 
			 Tanzania 54,300 215,100 900 4,800 92,900 243,600 124,800 321,400 142,100 251,500 
			 Thailand 116,900 1,280,200 2,100 30,700 188,100 1,518,000 353,500 2,235,100 519,000 2,309,700 
			 Trinidad and Tobago 4,300 18,000 100 600 6,600 29,400 21,600 43,000 10,800 6,000 
			 Tunisia 33,700 258,700 800 6,300 69,400 285,900 92,100 313,600 78,100 173,400 
			 Turkey 994,000 1,035,400 19,400 33,900 1,741,800 2,082,600 2,680,300 3,375,100 3,904,300 3,516,700 
			 Turkmenistan 8,500 35,300 100 1,100 8,600 41,300 21,100 50,000 24,900 52,000 
			 Uganda 78,000 413,100 1,100 8,300 123,900 303,900 156,800 439,200 158,800 444,000 
			 Ukraine 147,600 631,700 2,500 19,000 214,900 1,154,900 565,400 1,600,500 633,200 1,750,900 
			 United Arab Emirates 986,100 1,406,500 16,600 35,700 2,073,900 2,046,400 3,090,300 2,773,700 5,581,600 3,534,800 
			 United Kingdom 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 134,500 286,000 
			 United States 924,300 1,762,400 14,900 44,300 1,277,100 2,211,600 1,262,300 2,787,500 1,621,600 2,847,500 
			 Uruguay 0 300 0 0 300 700 800 200 0 0 
			 Uzbekistan 12,800 60,800 100 1,000 4,800 47,800 11,700 97,400 22,700 158,400 
			 Vanuatu 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Venezuela 900 4,900 0 100 800 11,600 4,600 12,100 3,900 7,100 
			 Vietnam 7,500 121,900 100 3,300 15,700 206,000 45,000 322,400 42,900 305,400 
			 Yemen 50,700 70,300 400 1,600 51,300 93,400 69,900 144,700 100,900 90,600 
			 Yugoslavia 133,800 370,600 1,900 10,800 170,000 582,400 209,400 758,800 283,100 909,900 
			 Zambia 18,800 125,200 300 3,600 24,800 203,600 53,200 258,800 85,400 224,700 
			 Zimbabwe 138,300 600,300 1,900 13,100 129,500 503,300 138,000 316,000 76,000 104,700

Visas: Finance

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost has been of a  (a) short-term visitor visa for (i) single and (ii) multiple entry and  (b) long-term visitor visa for (A) one year, (B) two years, (C) five years and (D) 10 years in each year since 2000.

Alan Johnson: The following table shows the fee for  (a) a standard six month visit visa and  (b) visit visas valid for longer periods for the financial years 2002-09 (inclusive).
	
		
			  Visit visa duration  1999-2000  to  2001-02  2002-03  to  2004-05  2005-06  to  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			 6 month 45 36 50 63 65 67 
			 2 years 55 60 (1)85 (1)200 (1)205 215 
			 5 years 60 88 (1)- (1)- (1)- 400 
			 10 years 80 150 (1)- (1)- (1)- 500 
			 (1) Represents brace.  Note:  All visit visas are multiple entry visas. Any single visit cannot exceed six months, regardless of the validity of the visa.

Visas: Pakistan

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many visa applications were received by the visa section in Islamabad in each of the last 12 months.

Alan Johnson: Islamabad visa section received the following number of visa applications:
	
		
			   Number 
			  2008  
			 July 17,604 
			 August 12,291 
			 September 10,391 
			 October 4,250 
			 November 4,550 
			 December 4,420 
			  2009  
			 January 5,072 
			 February 3,884 
			 March 3,961 
			 April 3,780 
			 May 4,171 
			 June 2,404 
		
	
	The volume of applications, month on month, reflects the partial closure of the visa operation following security incidents.
	These figures do not constitute part of National Statistics as they are based on internal management information. The information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols, should be treated as provisional and is subject to change.

Visas: Pakistan

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how long on average elapsed between an applicant in Pakistan applying for each type of visa and a decision on that application being made in the latest period for which figures are available.

Alan Johnson: The current processing time on receipt of the visa application to decision for settlement applications is up to 60 working days. For all other types of applications the current average processing time is up to 15-20 working days from receipt of application to decision. Some cases can take considerably longer while further checks are carried out. Complex cases take longer.

Written Questions: Government Responses

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to answer Question 259199 tabled by the hon. Member for Southend West on 23 February 2009 on the British Nationality (Honorary Citizenship) Bill; what the reasons are for the time taken to respond; what recent representations he has received from hon. Members on the time taken by his Department to respond to Questions for written answer; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: I replied to the hon. Gentleman on 1 June 2009,  Official Report, column 145W.
	The Department makes every effort to respond to Members' questions within the deadlines set. Sometimes this is not possible. A few hon. Members have tabled written questions on the Department's PQ performance this session.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to answer Question  (a) 273961,  (b) 273962,  (c) 273963 and (d) 273964, tabled on 5 May 2009, on the Cabinet meeting in Glasgow.

Phil Woolas: I replied to the hon. Gentleman on 20 July 2009,  Official Report, column 905W.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to answer  (a) Question 281217, tabled on 16 June 2009, on visa applications at Pristina,  (b) Question 281218, tabled on 16 June 2009, on visa applications at Skopje,  (c) Question 276908, tabled on 19 May 2009, on Gurkhas and  (d) Question 273542, tabled on 5 May 2009, on Gurkhas.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 7 July 2009
	In respect of Parliamentary Question 281217, I replied to the hon. Member on 21 July 2009. In respect of Parliamentary Question 28128, I replied to the hon. Member on 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 144W. I replied to the hon. Member on Parliamentary Questions 276908 and 273542 on 20 July 2009,  Official Report, column 930W.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to answer Question  (a) 279500 and  (b) 279501, on Demos, tabled on 11 June 2009.

Phil Woolas: I replied  (a) to the hon. Member on 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 400W and my right hon. Friend the Member for Delyn (Mr. Hanson) replied  (b) on 20 July 2009,  Official Report, column 909W.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he plans to respond to question 275375 from the hon. Member for Hemel Hempstead on correspondence with the UK Border Agency on asylum seekers from Zimbabwe.

Phil Woolas: The chief executive of the UK Border Agency wrote in response to the hon. Member's letter on 20 July and I answered PQ 275375 on 21 July.

CABINET OFFICE

Cybercrime

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps the Office of Cyber Security plans to take to raise awareness of cyber security in the Government.

David Hanson: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government's Cyber Security Strategy, published last month, announced new governance structures and a cross-government programme of work in pursuit of the UK's strategic cyber security objectives. These objectives include reducing the risks and exploiting the opportunities from our use of cyber space through improving knowledge, capabilities and decision-making.
	These objectives will be delivered through eight new workstreams, overseen by the Office of Cyber Security and supported by the Cyber Security Operations Centre:
	Workstream 1: Safe, secure and Resilient Systems
	Workstream 2: Policy, Doctrine, Legal and Regulatory Issues
	Workstream 3: Awareness and Culture Change
	Workstream 4: Skills and Education
	Workstream 5: Technical Capabilities and Research and Development
	Workstream 6: Exploitation
	Workstream 7: International Engagement
	Workstream 8: Governance, Roles and Responsibilities
	These workstreams will build on existing work to take forward the Government's plans for reducing the impact on and vulnerability of the UK's interests from cyber attacks. They also describe how the Government would improve knowledge and awareness of the issues and the range of stakeholders who will be involved in the process, including the public.
	As the strategy makes clear, this programme will be delivered through a partnership approach comprising Government, organisations across all sectors, and the public.

Departmental Manpower

Jo Swinson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what percentage of employees in her Department are  (a) women and  (b) men; and what the average hourly pay is of (i) male and (ii) female employees.

Angela Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 16 July 2009,  Official Report, column 632W.

Unemployment

Terry Rooney: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many jobseeker's allowance claimants aged  (a) 18 to 21 and  (b) 22 to 24 years old in each Jobcentre Plus district have been unemployed for up to (i) six and (ii) 12 months.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated July 2009:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many jobseeker's allowance claimants aged (a) 18 to 21 and (b) 22 to 24 years old in each Jobcentre Plus district have been unemployed for up to (i) six months and (ii) 12 months. (288705)
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles the number of claimants of Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) from the Jobcentre Plus administrative system. The duration of claims is not available for 18 to 21 year olds or 22 to 24 year olds. As an alternative table 1 shows the number of JSA claimants aged 18 to 19 and 20 to 24 who have claimed for up to 26 weeks and more than 26 up to 52 weeks.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
	
		
			  Table 1: Number( 1)  of persons claiming jobseeker's allowance in each Jobcentre Plus district by age and duration 
			   Up to 26 weeks  Over 26 and up to 52 weeks  Up to 26 weeks  Over 26 and up to 52 weeks 
			 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 2,465 335 4,975 860 
			 Berks, Bucks and Oxfordshire 2,760 390 5,765 1,000 
			 Essex 3,035 605 5,560 1,300 
			 Hampshire 2,770 460 5,430 1,205 
			 Kent 3,095 470 5,505 895 
			 Surrey and Sussex 2,990 505 6,140 1,215 
			 Cambridgeshire and Suffolk 2,435 410 4,500 950 
			 Norfolk 1,395 295 2,675 655 
			 Central London 950 165 2,955 585 
			 City and East London 1,515 260 4,440 1,020 
			 Lambeth, Southwark and Wandsworth 1,255 155 3,665 725 
			 London West 1,875 235 5,815 970 
			 North and North East London 3,035 460 7,665 1,320 
			 South London 3,070 420 7,345 1,135 
			 Devon and Cornwall 2,470 430 4,740 1,075 
			 Dorset and Somerset 1,570 205 2,795 465 
			 Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Swindon 2,030 400 3,760 835 
			 West of England 1,610 250 3,390 680 
			 Birmingham and Solihull 3,790 690 7,995 2,190 
			 Black Country 3,565 855 7,040 1,890 
			 Coventry and Warwickshire 1,635 310 3,465 620 
			 Marches 2,185 375 4,080 820 
			 Staffordshire 2,105 435 4,225 925 
			 Derbyshire 2,250 475 4,095 965 
			 Leicestershire and Northamptonshire 2,985 580 6,295 1,420 
			 Lincolnshire and Rutland 1,300 255 2,360 495 
			 Nottinghamshire 2,290 405 4,410 1,055 
			 North and East Yorkshire and the Humber 3,340 700 6,965 1,605 
			 South Yorkshire 3,630 810 6,965 1,815 
			 West Yorkshire 5,510 1,030 11,090 2,405 
			 Cheshire Halton and Warrington 1,815 380 3,670 860 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire 3,615 615 7,200 1,515 
			 Greater Manchester Central 2,225 355 5,155 905 
			 Greater Manchester East and West 4,335 975 8,360 2,040 
			 Merseyside 3,895 945 8,330 2,515 
			 Northumbria 2,160 430 4,540 1,005 
			 South Tyne and Wear Valley 2,705 660 5,340 1,490 
			 Tees Valley 2,000 445 3,935 1,090 
			 North and Mid-Wales 1,410 300 2,660 660 
			 South East Wales 2,000 370 3,775 795 
			 South Wales Valleys 2,150 685 3,685 1,330 
			 South West Wales 1,500 280 2,825 605 
			 Ayrshire, Dumfries, Galloway and Inverclyde 1,560 260 2,755 625 
			 Edinburgh, Lothian and Borders 1,685 255 3,055 525 
			 Forth Valley and Fife and Tayside 2,365 500 4,180 985 
			 Glasgow 1,720 325 3,690 840 
			 Highlands, Islands, Clyde Coast and Grampian 1,805 265 3,255 525 
			 Lanarkshire and East Dunbartonshire 1,825 330 3,100 730 
			 Northern Ireland 3,525 1,050 8,580 2,785 
			 (1) Rounded to nearest 5.  Source: Jobcentre Plus administrative system.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Arts

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which events in the Arts Council's 2010 Cultural Olympiad will take place in former coalfield communities  (a) in Nottinghamshire and  (b) elsewhere in the UK.

Barbara Follett: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Cultural Olympiad is a national celebration of culture as part of the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. It will harness the power of the Games to inspire creativity across all forms of culture, especially among young people and is designed to give everyone in the country a chance to be part of the Games and to leave a lasting legacy well beyond 2012.
	Arts Council England has two major projects around the Cultural Olympiad: Artists Taking the Lead and Unlimited. In addition, the Arts Council and the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games will be co-ordinating further activities all over England and elsewhere in the UK including in former coalfield communities.

Arts Council of England: Grants

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much Arts Council England awarded in grants in 2008-09.

Barbara Follett: holding answer 20 July 2009
	Arts Council England advises that it awarded £501,824,000 in grants in 2008-09.

Arts: Apprentices

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many apprenticeships have been created in the creative industries since the launch of his Department's Creative Britain strategy in February 2008; and which organisations have applied to be involved in the scheme.

Si�n Simon: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State, to the hon. Member for South-West Surrey (Mr. Hunt) on 17 June 2009,  Official Report, column 344W.
	To date, over 150 organisations have expressed an interest in taking on apprentices in the creative industries. These include:
	Bluecoat Display Centre
	FACT
	Hartlepool Museum, Arts and Events Service
	Jack Drum Arts
	Lincolnshire County Council-Heritage Services
	Liverpool Biennial
	Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse
	National Museums Liverpool
	Northampton County Council
	Northern Stage
	Royal Liverpool Philharmonic
	Tate Liverpool
	The Customs House
	The Sage Gateshead
	Tyne and Wear Museum
	Unity Theatre
	The Arcola
	The Victoria and Albert Museum
	London Transport Museum
	Live Nation
	Ryedale Folk Museum
	Bradford Council
	Royal Exchange Theatre
	Walsall Art Gallery
	Beam Gallery
	Sheffield Gallery and Museums Trust
	North Yorkshire County Council
	Birmingham Hippodrome
	Royal and Derngate Theatre
	Wolverhampton Art Gallery
	The Hat Factory
	Royal Opera House
	Historic Royal Palaces
	Plymouth Museum and Archives
	Colston Hall
	Lyric Theatre Hammersmith
	Universal Music
	Creative Alliance
	BLT
	Ditto Music
	Old Smithy
	JJM Studios
	Dudley Performing Arts
	Wiltshire Dancing
	DV8
	Rising Tide
	Manchester City Council
	Colchester Mercury
	Jabadao
	Carling Academy
	National Media Museum
	Beatrix Potter Gallery
	The Old Laundry Theatre
	Duke's Theatre
	Lancaster Theatre
	Theatre by the Lake
	Brewery Arts Centre
	Apples and Snakes
	City of Westminster College
	New College, Nottingham
	Theatre Royal, Stratford East
	The Borough Council of Kings Lynn and West Norfolk
	Museum of East Anglian Life
	The Albany
	Theatre Peckham

Arts: Economic Situation

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the effect of the recession on the creative industries.

Si�n Simon: My Department is monitoring the performance of the creative industries utilising reports and evidence directly from individual sectors.
	At the same time my Department is seeking to ensure that the creative industries receive the maximum level of Government support possible.

Arts: Education

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress has been made towards creating a 14-to-25 academic hub for the creative industries.

Si�n Simon: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for South-West Surrey (Mr. Hunt) on 22 June 2009,  Official Report, column 612W.

Arts: Education

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress has been made towards developing the five centres of excellence in creative skills announced as part of his Department's Creative Britain strategy.

Si�n Simon: The following progress has been made towards developing the five centres of excellence in creative skills:
	 World class centre of excellence and finishing school in animation
	A feasibility study funded by South West Regional Development Agency for a 'world class centre of excellence and finishing school in animation' has recently ended with agreement between the partners that the originally envisaged facility should not proceed at this time.
	 Couture  a cademy
	Skillfast-UK anticipates that the first partnership between higher education and employers will be established in the new year.
	 National Skills Academy for the creative and cultural industries
	Creative and Cultural Skills Sector Skills Council received support from the Learning and Skills Council to set up a National Skills Academy for Creative and Cultural Skills in May 2008.
	 National centre of excellence for computer games
	A feasibility study, commissioned by the North West Regional Development Agency (NWDA), into a video games centre of excellence was produced in March 2009. DCMS and BIS officials have been working together with Industry and the NWDA to \take the project forward.
	 UK Design Skills Alliance
	The UK Design Skills Alliance launched in September 2008.

Arts: Finance

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the monetary value of exports of services by the creative industries was in each of the last five years; and what the estimated monetary value of exports from such industries is for 2009-10.

Si�n Simon: The total monetary value of exports of services by the UK creative industries in each of the last five years for which data is available is as follows:
	
		
			   Total (£ million) 
			 2002 11,300 
			 2003 11,600 
			 2004 13,000 
			 2005 14,600 
			 2006 16,000 
			  Source: DCMS Creative Industries Economics Estimates, January 2009 
		
	
	These totals exclude crafts and designer fashion as figures are not available for every year.
	No future estimates have been made.

Arts: Finance

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate he has made of the contribution of the creative industries to the UK's gross domestic product in each of the last five years; and what the estimated contribution for 2009-10 is.

Si�n Simon: The contribution of the creative industries to the UK's gross value added (GVA) in each of the last five years for which data are available is as follows:
	
		
			   Total (£ million) 
			 2002 45,000 
			 2003 49,200 
			 2004 53,600 
			 2005 57,700 
			 2006 57,300 
			  Source: DCMS Creative Industries Economics Estimates, Jan 2009 
		
	
	These totals exclude crafts and design as gross value added figures are not available for these sectors.
	No future estimates have been made.

Arts: Finance

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the economic growth rate in the creative industries has been in each of the last five years; and what estimate he has made of the likely rate of growth in 2009-10.

Si�n Simon: The gross value added (GVA) of the UK creative industries grew by an average of 4 per cent. per annum between 1997 and 2006. This compares to an average of 3 per cent. for the whole of the economy over this period.
	The annual change in G VA for the creative industries over the last five years for which data are available is as follows:
	
		
			   Annual growth (percentage) 
			 2001-02 -2 
			 2002-03 6 
			 2003-04 6 
			 2004-05 5 
			 2005-06 -3 
			   
			 Average 1997 to 2006 4 
			  Source: DCMS Creative Industries Economic Estimate, January 2009 
		
	
	All figures exclude crafts and design as annual gross value added figures are not available for these sectors.
	No future estimates have been made.

Arts: Manpower

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate he has made of the number of redundancies in the creative industries in the last 12 months.

Si�n Simon: I have made no estimate of the number of redundancies in the creative industries in the last 12 months.
	The Government's Future Jobs Fund aims to create 150,000 places in total and will create real jobs in interesting and socially worthwhile industries so people can get the skills and qualifications they need for jobs for the future.
	The DCMS has announced it will contribute at least 10,000 jobs through its sectors, at least 5,000 of which will be in the cultural and creative industries.

Arts: Manpower

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many people have been employed in the creative industries in each of the last five years.

Si�n Simon: Total creative employment in Great Britain in each of the last five years for which data are available is as follows:
	
		
			   Total 
			 2002 1,830,700 
			 2003 1,878,800 
			 2004 1,825,000 
			 2005 1,824,400 
			 2006 1,906,300 
			 2007 1,978,200 
			  Source: DCMS Creative Industries Economics Estimates, January 2009 
		
	
	Total creative employment includes all employment in the creative industries and additional employment in creative occupations in businesses outside the creative industries.

Bookmakers

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2008,  Official Report, column 1046W, on bookmakers, whether the outstanding issues have been resolved following the local negotiations; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Local negotiations have taken place between a number of racecourses and the bookmakers who use them. However, these have not as yet resulted in the outstanding issues being resolved or agreements being reached on the allocation of pitches and the parties' duties and responsibilities from 1 September 2012.
	I am encouraged by the recent proposal from Northern Racing to on-course bookmakers at its nine racecourses of a commercial deal to 2042. I believe this shows there is still room for local negotiations to result in agreements without the need for further Government intervention.
	I am looking for racecourses and bookmakers to achieve meaningful progress and intend to reconvene the working party in due course to take stock.

Boxing: Diabetes

Ian Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make an assessment of restrictions on participation in boxing at competition level by people with insulin-dependent diabetes.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Amateur Boxing Association of England's Medical Commission along with Diabetes UK have recently drafted a set of conditions on participation in boxing at competition level by people with insulin-treated diabetes. These conditions have been accepted, and adopted as rules, by the Amateur Boxing Association of England's Boxing Council.
	Under these rules, all individuals with diabetes can compete as long as a diabetic specialist or doctor is in attendance who will care and monitor the diabetic participant.

Broadband: North Yorkshire

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent steps his Department has taken to provide the universal service obligation in respect of access to a broadband connection in  (a) rural and  (b) urban areas of North Yorkshire; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: I have been asked to reply.
	In the Digital Britain White Paper, the Government set out their plan of how the Universal Service Commitment in relation to broadband will be achieved, committing an anticipated £200 million of public funds to help deliver this with the remainder of the costs been met from the private sector through in-kind contributions, competitive commercial pricing through tender contract and design, and contributions from other public sector organisations.
	The process will be delivered through an arms-length body, the Network Design and Procurement Group, who will be responsible for managing the procurement process and prioritising which areas receive additional support to enable them to reap the benefits of universal broadband access. The Government hope to confirm the appointment of a CEO for the Group in the autumn.

Casinos: Licensing

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 16 June 2009,  Official Report, columns 139-40W, on casinos: licensing, when he plans to issue guidance to licensing authorities on definitions of a gaming table in operation and ratios of gaming tables in use.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Regulations to define what will constitute a gaming table for the purposes of section 172(3) to 172(5) of the Gambling Act 2005 will be laid shortly. Should additional guidance be required then the Department will liaise with the Gambling Commission and licensing authorities on the best method for doing so.

Cricket: Schools

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many maintained  (a) primary and  (b) secondary schools have cricket as part of their physical education curriculum.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Department for Children, Schools and Families have advised that the PE and sport survey collects data relating to the percentage of schools which offer certain sports for their pupils.
	In this context, the last survey (2007-08) showed that 90 per cent. of all schools offer cricket for their pupils. This can be broken down into 88 per cent. of primary schools, and 98 per cent. of secondary schools. This has remained fairly constant over the last three years.

Culture: Education

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress has been made towards every child taking part in five hours of cultural activity each week; and what estimate he has made of the number of school children who participate in five hours of cultural activity each week.

Barbara Follett: The Find Your Talent Pathfinder areas are trialling ways to deliver five hours of high-quality cultural experience to children and young people in their areas. They are almost one year into their three-year programmes. The Pathfinder activities run in parallel with a diverse range of national cultural education programmes, including significant investment in music education.
	The figure for the numbers of children currently doing five hours across the whole country will be available from the results of the DCMS Taking Part Survey in October 2009. The Pathfinder areas are developing their own baseline figures for participation against which to compare this national figure.

Damian McBride

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on what date he last met Mr. Damian McBride in the course of his official duties.

Ben Bradshaw: Never.

Departmental Billing

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what percentage of invoices from suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in June 2009.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The percentage of invoices paid within 10 days in June 2009 by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport was 84 per cent.

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what percentage of employees in his Department  (a) are on a flexible working contract,  (b) are on a job share employment contract and  (c) work from home for more than four hours a week.

Gerry Sutcliffe: (a) The Department has a policy of promoting flexible working arrangements. These are agreed at team and sector level and as such records of these arrangements are not kept centrally with human resources.
	 (b) There is currently one job share employment contract in place. This represents less than 1 per cent. of the total number of employees in the Department.
	 (c) 21 employees, or 4.5 per cent. of the total number of employees in the Department, currently work from home for more than four hours a week.

Departmental Finance

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what procedures his Department and its agencies have to assess the cost- effectiveness of grants which they make.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Ninety-seven per cent. of the Department's budget is allocated to the public bodies that help us to deliver our strategic aim and objectives. These bodies agree a high level three-year funding agreement with the Department, which explains what they will deliver for the funding allocated to them. The agreement summarises strategic priorities, key activities and outputs to be delivered, and is regularly reviewed.
	The most up-to-date information about performance against departmental strategic objectives and public service agreements can be found in the Department's annual report and accounts, which were laid on the 16 July by HM Treasury.

Departmental Internet

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 49W, on departmental internet, what the  (a) names and  (b) versions are of the web browsers used on the (i) desktop machines and (ii) laptop computers used by his Department's (A) permanent secretary, (B) chief information officer, (C) head of communications and (D) head of finance.

Gerry Sutcliffe: My Department's (A) Permanent Secretary runs Internet Explorer 6 on their desktop machine, the (B) chief information officer runs Internet Explorer 8, Firefox 3.51 and Chrome 2 on their desktop and laptop machines, the (C) head of communications runs Internet Explorer 6 on their desktop machine and their laptop machine and the (D) head of finance runs Internet Explorer 7 on their laptop machine.

Departmental Work Experience

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many interns work in his Department; what terms of reference apply to their appointment; what remuneration they receive; and how long on average an intern appointment lasts.

Gerry Sutcliffe: DCMS does not currently have any interns working in the Department.

Digital Broadcasting

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent progress has been made in modifying television transmitters in  (a) Wales and  (b) the rest of the UK for the digital switchover; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested is as follows:
	 (a) Switchover in Wales starts at the Kilvey Hill transmitter on 12 August 2009 and finishes at Wenvoe on 31 March 2010. Mast and antenna work has been completed at Wenvoe, Kilvey Hill, Preseli, Carmel, Llanddona, Moel y Pare and Long Mountain and is scheduled for completion at Blaenplwyf next month. Transmitter installations, relay upgrades, other works and testing will continue until around one month before the switchover dates for each transmitter group.
	 (b) For the rest of the UK, the transmitters at Selkirk, Beacon Hill and Stockland Hill and their dependent relays have completed switchover. Modification of the transmitters at Douglas, Huntshaw Cross, Caldbeck, Redruth and their dependent relays has been completed and the first stage of switchover has been completed at each. Various stages of mast, antenna and transmitter works are under way in all other UK regions.

EC Law

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate he has made of the proportion of statutory obligations provided for by legislation on matters for which his Department is responsible, which were introduced as a consequence of obligations arising from EU legislation in the latest period for which figures are available.

Barbara Follett: It is very difficult to provide precise figures for the proportion of legislation that stems from the European Union.
	The Secretary of State estimates that between 5 and 10 per cent. of legislation for which DCMS is responsible derives from or implements European Community obligations.
	This estimate is based on approximate page counts of the relevant statutes and secondary legislation. It includes: (a) provisions that implement Community obligations even where these have super equivalent effect; (b) provisions that are now relied upon as implementing Community obligations even where the UK had adopted the same or similar provisions before those obligations took effect.
	The administrative burdens measurement exercise carried out by the Government in 2006 put the proportion of administrative burdens stemming from the EU at approximately 1/3 of the total administrative burden.
	In the Government's view the quality, rather than the source of regulations is the most important issue. All regulations, irrespective of their origins, should comply with the principles of better regulation. Regulations should be risk-based, proportionate and well designed, so as to achieve their objectives while also keeping costs to a minimum. The Government continue to work with European partners to ensure that EU regulations meet these standards.

English Folk Dance and Song Society

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will have discussions with the English Folk Dance and Song Society on promoting England's traditional folk culture; and if he will make a statement.

Barbara Follett: The Secretary of State has no plans at present to meet the English Folk Dance and Song Society. Arts Council England is the national development agency for the arts in England, distributing public money from Government and the National Lottery. The Council's remit includes both dance and music, and its portfolio of Regularly Funded Organisations includes Folk Arts England, the national development agency for folk, roots and traditional music and Folk South West, the folk arts development organisation for the South West of England.

English Heritage: Conditions of Employment

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate English Heritage has made of the likely effects on its level of expenditure from changes to the terms and conditions of employment for its historic sites staff, including changes to pay, allowances and future pension entitlement.

Barbara Follett: This is primarily a matter for English Heritage, which has advised that any possible changes to the terms and conditions of employment for its staff at historic sites, including changes to pay, allowances and future pension entitlement, are currently the subject of discussions with trade unions. I have made no assessment of the likely effect of any potential changes.

English Heritage: Conditions of Employment

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans he has to reallocate savings arising from changes in the terms and conditions of English Heritage staff working at its historic sites; and what assessment he has made of the likely effects of such changes on  (a) staffing levels at historical sites in deprived areas and  (b) on regeneration in those areas.

Barbara Follett: This is primarily a matter for English Heritage, which has advised that any possible changes to the terms and conditions of employment for its staff at historic sites, including changes to how their pay is structured, are currently the subject of discussions with trade unions. I have made no assessment of the likely effect of any potential changes.

Gambling

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he expects his Department to finalise its conclusions on the measures required to ensure a level playing field for British gambling operators.

Gerry Sutcliffe: I will report to Parliament with findings on this work by the end of December 2009, as stated in my announcement on 30 April 2009.

Gaming Machines: Taxation

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions he had with HM Treasury on the regulation of the use of Category C amusement machines between his Department's announcement of new stake prize limits on Category C amusement machines in January 2009 and the announcement in Budget 2009 of a consultation on the tax treatment of amusement machines.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Department has regular discussions with HM Treasury about a range of gambling issues, including on the regulation of the use of Category C gaming machines prior to the announcement in Budget 2009 of a consultation on the tax treatment of amusement machines.

Heritage and Culture Sector Club

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 12 May 2009,  Official Report, columns 637-8W, on Heritage and Culture Sector Club: Visit Britain, how many officials of his Department provide support for the Heritage and Culture Sector Club; and on what date the club last met.

Barbara Follett: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Heritage and Culture Sector Club was one of a number of clubs set up by VisitBritain to engage with different sectors of the tourism industry. The club no longer exists and last met on 20 November 2007, this was a VisitBritain-led initiative and DCMS officials were not involved.

Hotels: Licensing

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the likely effect on bed and breakfast proprietors of the implementation of VisitBritain's concierge licence scheme.

Barbara Follett: The concierge licence scheme or DVD Concierge Licence, is not a VisitBritain scheme. It is run by an independent business called Filmbank, which collects licence fees, under existing copyright legislation on behalf of a number of the major film studios. Other such schemes exist to help bed-and-breakfast owners comply with copyright law. Neither VisitBritain nor VisitEngland endorse this or any other particular licence services.
	Under copyright law, businesses such as bed-and-breakfast accommodation should purchase a licence if DVDs are made available to guests. A licence is not required if DVDs are not provided by the establishment, or if guests bring their own.

ITV

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate he has made of the residual value of the ITV licence after digital switchover.

Si�n Simon: It is the Government's view, supported by Ofcom, that the residual value of the existing Channel 3 licences will decline further between now and the completion of digital switchover, meaning the benefits for ITV of remaining a PSB-public service broadcaster-will be outweighed by the obligations imposed on it.
	That is why, in the Digital Britain White Paper, we set out a clear direction of travel for the liberalisation of the Channel 3 licences.

ITV: Public Service Broadcasting

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what his most recent estimate is of the cost to ITV of its  (a) public service obligation and  (b) public service obligation in respect of regional news provision.

Si�n Simon: The analysis contained in Ofcom's second public service broadcasting review shows the 2009 pattern for regional news services in England and Wales costs over £50 million. The cost of ITV's other public service obligations are commercially sensitive.

Licensed Premises

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many premises in Greater London have had a licence to sell alcohol withdrawn since the implementation of the Licensing Act 2003.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Since the implementation of the Licensing Act 2003, DCMS has been collecting Alcohol, entertainment and late night refreshment statistics on an annual basis by financial year from licensing authorities. During the period April 2006 to March 2007 for licensing authorities in Greater London, 225 premises licences were surrendered, 21 lapsed, and six were suspended, (based on between 29 to 26 returns, out of 35, from licensing authorities in the Greater London Area). For the same period, eight club premises certificates were surrendered, none lapsed and none were withdrawn. There were also an additional 31 premises licences revoked or club premises certificates withdrawn following a completed review. Under the Licensing Act 2003, premises licences and club premises certificates are not confined to just authorise the sale or supply of alcohol; they also can provide regulated entertainment and/or late night refreshment. Therefore some of these closures may be for premises that are not authorised to sell or supply alcohol.
	The April 2007 to March 2008 bulletin reported for licensing authorities in Greater London that, 463 premises licences were surrendered, 39 lapsed, three were suspended by a court, and 17 were subject to a closure notice (based on returns from 33 or 32 of the 35 licensing authorities in the Greater London Area). For the same period, 15 club premises licences were surrendered, none lapsed and 1 was withdrawn. There were also an additional 41 premises licences revoked or club premises certificates withdrawn following a completed review.

Music: Finance

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much of the £500,000 funding announced in December 2007 to set up music rehearsal spaces has been  (a) allocated and  (b) spent in each region.

Si�n Simon: So far, £72,434 of the £500,000 pledged to set up music rehearsal spaces has been spent. In the North West (Liverpool) expenditure has been £39,074, and in the South West (Bristol) expenditure has been £30,376. The total expenditure includes £2,984 paid to Sound Connections for the administration of the scheme.
	In total, we are seeking to establish 10 pilot music rehearsal spaces in England. Although their grant allocations have yet to be finalised, those we plan to open over the next few months will be in Hastings, Washington, St. Austell, rural Norfolk, and Nottingham.

National Lottery: Grants

Fraser Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what proportion of Lottery funding for good causes has been awarded to organisations operating in  (a) Sunderland and  (b) England in the last 12 months.

Si�n Simon: The total value of Lottery grants awarded across the UK in the last 12 months to 30 June 2009 was £854.74 million. The amount awarded in that period in  (a) the Sunderland local authority area was £2.08 million and in  (b) England was £596.64 million.
	This information is drawn from DCMS's Lottery Grants database. The database is searchable at:
	www.lottery.culture.gov.uk
	http://www.lottery.culture.gov.uk
	and uses information supplied by the Lottery distributors.

Olympic Games 2012: Football

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent representations he has received on the eligibility of players from the four home nations for selection for a Great Britain football team at the London 2012 Olympics.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 20 July 2009
	I have not received any recent representations about eligibility of players from the four home nations for selection for a Great Britain football team at the London 2012 Olympic Games.
	This is a matter for the home nation Football Associations and the British Olympic Association.

Pay Television

Adrian Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he expects Ofcom  (a) to conclude its pay TV market investigation and  (b) to publish its final remedies regarding the pay TV market.

Patrick McFadden: I have been asked to reply.
	Ofcom's investigation into the pay TV market is a matter for Ofcom. My officials have discussed this investigation with Ofcom. Ofcom published its third consultation document on their website on 26 June which calls for views on proposed remedies for the pay TV market. Ofcom's document can be viewed at the following link:
	http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/third_paytv/summary/

Renaissance Programme for Museums: Finance

Edward Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he plans to publish the income and expenditure accounts of the Renaissance programme for museums for each year since 2002.

Barbara Follett: The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council has advised that it has only ever published Renaissance income and expenditure as part of its overall accounts, and that to provide the information in the format requested could be done only at disproportionate cost. The Renaissance review, to be published in July 2009, will contain detailed financial information about the Programme's past finances. The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council is committed to publishing an annual report for Renaissance from 2010 onwards which will include detailed accounts for the Programme.

Ryder Cup: Wales

Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans he has to meet the Welsh Assembly Government to discuss the hosting of the Ryder Cup tournament in 2010.

Gerry Sutcliffe: While I wish The Ryder Cup 2010 all the success possible, The Ryder Cup 2010 is a matter for the Welsh Assembly and Ryder Cup Wales. However, the Secretary of State is due to visit The Celtic Manor Resort shortly, and meet with the Welsh Heritage Minister.

Sports: Finance

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what provisions in  (a) his Department's funding agreement with Sport England and  (b) Sport England's guidance to national governing bodies concern management of capital funding; and if he will place in the Library a copy of Sport England's guidance.

Gerry Sutcliffe: All national governing bodies are required to govern their affairs properly as a condition of Sport England funding.
	Earlier this year, Sport England provided guidance to national governing bodies on managing their capital funding, based on best practice developed over five years delivering the Community Club Development Programme. This guidance-the 2009-13 National Governing Body Funding Memorandum of Agreement for Capital Build-has been placed in the Libraries of the House.

Sports: Young People

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps his Department has taken to encourage young people to participate in sport in the last 12 months.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Through the PE and Sport Strategy for Young People (PESSYP) and as part of our London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic promises, we have extended our ambition for PE and sport and are creating a world-class system that will offer five hours of PE and Sport a week for 5-16 year olds and three hours a week for 16 to 19 year-olds.
	In total, we are investing over £2.4 billion in the eight years to 2011, including £783 million from 2008-11. This will help to develop and sustain the nationwide infrastructure for sport in schools, which covers every maintained school in England, and from 2008 we began creating and sustaining a new network of Further Education Sports Co-ordinators (FESCOs) to realise our ambitions for 16 to 19 year-olds.
	We are also building capacity of the system by training PE teachers, recruiting and deploying more coaches and reinvigorating inter-school competition through our new network of Competition Managers.
	As well as revitalising PE and school sport, we are delivering more opportunities in community settings by working with 34 national governing bodies of sport to strengthen links between schools and community clubs and by focusing investment through our new exciting 'Sport Unlimited' programme to reach semi-sporty children and young people, attracting them into a greater range of sustainable sporting activities.

Swimming

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which local authorities have applied for funding under the Government's free swimming initiative.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 20 July 2009
	I have arranged for a list to be placed in the House Libraries of those local authorities who have received funding under the Government's free swimming initiative.
	Full information about which local authorities are offering free swimming and the grants awarded is available at the DCMS website:
	http://www.culture.gov.uk/what_we_do/sport/5810.aspx

Telecommunications: Disclosure of Information

Eleanor Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many requests for communications data were made by Ofcom to communication service providers (CSPs) under the  (a) Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949,  (b) Telecommunications Act 1984 and  (c) Communications Act 2003 in (i) 2000, (ii) 2001, (iii) 2002, (iv) 2003, (v) 2004, (vi) 2005, (vii) 2006, (viii) 2007 and (ix) 2008; and how many of these requests resulted in the requested communications data being disclosed by the relevant CSP.

Patrick McFadden: I have been asked to reply.
	The matters raised are the responsibility of the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom), which is accountable to Parliament rather than Ministers. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of Ofcom to reply directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the chief executive's letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Television: Finance

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether implementation of his Department's proposals for a contained contestable element of the television licence fee would require the enactment of primary legislation.

Si�n Simon: Primary legislation is not required for introducing a contained contestable element within the television licence fee but may be necessary depending on how the contained contestable element is spent and will be considered as part of the Government's proposed Digital Economy Bill.

Television: Finance

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether implementation of his Department's proposals for the allocation of a proportion of the projected digital switchover help scheme underspend to test a range of pilots testing different models for the creation of contestable funding for news before 2012 would require  (a) the enactment of legislation and  (b) approval by the BBC Trust.

Si�n Simon: The allocation of an underspend in relation to the switchover help scheme is dealt with in schedule 1 to that scheme. While the BBC Trust's approval of this spend is not specifically required, the Government will be discussing the use of the television licence fee with the BBC Trust during the current consultation period. Whether primary legislation is needed or not will depend on how the underspend is spent, and will be considered as part of the Government's proposed Digital Economy Bill.

Theatre: Young People

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many free theatre tickets have been given out to young people in each region since the launch of the A Night Less Ordinary Scheme in February 2009.

Barbara Follett: Data is still being collected, but the number of tickets given away in each region in the first three months of the A Night Less Ordinary scheme (16 February-30 April 2009) is set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Arts Council England region  Tickets issued 
			 East 1,109 
			 East Midlands 3,816 
			 London (1)15,961 
			 North East 949 
			 North West (1)4,775 
			 South East (1)5,921 
			 South West 2,862 
			 West Midlands 8,281 
			 Yorkshire 3,293 
			 North East and North West (2)472 
			 Total (3)47,439 
			 (1) Awaiting results from one theatre (2) As part of Rural Highlights Touring Scheme (3) Awaiting results from three theatres

Tourism: Finance

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding his Department allocated for development of the tourism sector in each region of England in each year since 2003.

Barbara Follett: DCMS invested £49.9 million in VisitBritain and VisitEngland in 2008-09, toward marketing Britain overseas and marketing England domestically.
	Responsibility for tourism in the regions was taken over by the regional development agencies (RDAs) in 2003. Funding for the RDAs is not ring-fenced for particular economic sectors, such as tourism.
	In each year from 2003-04 to 2007-08, DCMS contributed £3.6 million to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills Single Programme budget (the Single Pot) in respect of regional tourism responsibilities. The Single Pot, which was set at approximately £2.2 billion, £2.2 billion and £2.1 billion in 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11 respectively, is allocated among the RDAs by DBIS. DCMS's contribution will be £3.5 million, £3.4 million and £3.3 million in these years.
	In 2007-08, the nine English RDAs invested almost £70 million in tourism.

World Cup: Football

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the budget is for the  (a) office,  (b) staffing costs and  (c) other expenditure of the Prime Minister's Special Representative to the 2018 World Cup Bid in (i) 2009-10 and (ii) 2010-11.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Prime Minister's Special Representative's role is an honorary role.
	My Department does not hold a separate budget for the Prime Minister's Special Representative for the 2018 World Cup Bid. His administrative cost are met, where necessary, by my Department.

World Cup: Football

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the responsibilities of the Prime Minister's Special Representative to the 2018 World Cup Bid are; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Prime Minister appointed the World Cup ambassador on 27 June 2007 with the purpose of working closely with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and the English Football Association, to promote our bid to host the 2018 World Cup.

World Cup: Football

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many overseas visits the Prime Minister's Special Representative for the 2018 World Cup Bid has undertaken; at what cost; and what visits are planned prior to May 2010.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Prime Minister's Special Representative for the 2018 World Cup has undertaken six overseas visits at a cost to the Department of £7,538.02.
	All these costs were incurred before the formation of the England 2018 board. All future travel costs will be met by England 2018.

HEALTH

Accident and Emergency Departments: Crimes  of Violence

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times the police have been called out to accident and emergency departments in each NHS trust area because of disorderly conduct by patients in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: This information is not collected centrally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many prescriptions of drugs for the treatment of alcohol dependency were dispensed in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of  (a) men and  (b) women were diagnosed as alcohol-dependent in each of the last five years;
	(3)  how many and what proportion of  (a) men aged over 65 years and  (b) women aged over 65 years was diagnosed as alcohol-dependent in each of the last five years;
	(4)  how many and what proportion of under 18 year old  (a) males and  (b) females were diagnosed as alcohol-dependent in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: There are a number of drugs that can be used to treat, or that are used in the treatment, of alcohol dependency. The vast majority of these drugs are used to treat a range of other conditions and data on their use cannot be broken down to show use by disease group, therefore providing this data would be misleading. However, Dusulfiram (Antabuse) and Acamprosate Calcium (Campral EC) are used only in the treatment of alcohol dependency and the following table gives the combined number of prescription items for Dusulfiram (Antabuse) and Acamprosate Calcium (Campral EC) dispensed in the community in England over the last five years.
	
		
			  Number of prescription items for Acamprosate Calcium (Campral EC) and Disulfiram (Antabuse) dispensed in the community in England, 2004 - 08 
			   Items 
			 2004 110,057 
			 2005 109,170 
			 2006 115,924 
			 2007 122,828 
			 2008 134,477 
			  Note:  Prescriptions are written on a prescription form. Each single item written on the form is counted as a prescription item. 
		
	
	The information on the number of men and women diagnosed as alcohol-dependent is not collected centrally and information on the proportion of men and women diagnosed as alcohol-dependent is not available in the format requested.
	Information on the proportion of men and women in England who showed 'any dependence' on alcohol is available for 2000 and 2007 as part of the NHS Information Centre for health and social care report Adult Psychiatric Morbidity in England, 2007. However, data on alcohol dependence is available for the following age groups 16 to 24, 25 to 34, 35 to 44, 45 to 54, 55 to 64, 65 to 74, and not the age groups requested.
	This report provides useful trend data, comparing 2007 with 2000, however it is important to note that it uses a definition of 'any dependence', which will have included a number of people with mild dependence who either did not require intensive specialised treatment or whose dependence would resolve without any intervention.
	Epidemiological analysis of alcohol dependence by independent academics, including that provided in the Alcohol Needs Assessment Research Project (ANARP) commissioned from St. George's university in 2004, included use of a different methodology for estimating the most clinically relevant level of alcohol dependence in the population, taking into account the reliability and robustness of using the cut-off chosen in their study.
	The cut-off used in the ANARP study, for example, was used to identify either moderately or severely dependent drinkers, as opposed to the identification of any dependence used for the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity in England, 2007 report sample.
	ANARP conducted their research over a period of six months between September 2004 and February 2005, and found an overall prevalence figure for alcohol dependence of 3.6 per cent. in those aged between 16 and 64, which equated to 1.1 million people with alcohol dependence for England.
	The Adult Psychiatric Morbidity in England, 2007 report, shows the proportion of men and women, by age, who showed any dependence on alcohol in 2000 and 2007. A copy of the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity in England, 2007 report has been placed in the Library.

Analgesics

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS spent on analgesic drugs in each of the last three years.

Mike O'Brien: The following table provides the net ingredient cost (NIC) of analgesic drugs for both primary and secondary care. The primary care figures are for those drugs as listed in section 4.7 of the British National Formulary. The secondary care NIC figures are for drugs in the following Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) European Pharmaceutical Market Research Association (EPhMRA) sections: N02A0 Narcotic Analgesics, N02B0 Non-Narcotic Analgesics and N02C0 Anti-migraine Preparations.
	
		
			  Analgesic drugs-NIC 
			  £000 
			   Primary care  Secondary care 
			 2006 411,167.5 50,390.1 
			 2007 450,805.6 53,672.7 
			 2008 426,166.4 52,069.7 
			  Source: Prescription Cost Analysis (PCA) and Hospital Pharmacy Audit Index held by IMS Health

Blood: Contamination

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the answer of 14 May 2007,  Official Report, columns 574-5W, on blood: contamination, what steps he has taken to identify the reasons for the destruction of legal waivers indemnifying the Government against any further litigation signed by registrants of the MacFarlane Trust; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: Further to the answer of 14 May 2007,  Official Report, column 574W, the Department has identified 247 waivers on file. As explained in the previous answer, a number of waivers going back to 1989 were inadvertently destroyed with the files in which they were held.

Cardiovascular System: Children

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated on new techniques for identifying cardiovascular risk in children; and at what locations such research is being carried out.

Gillian Merron: The Department's National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) is funding a study via its Health Technology Assessment programme on pulse oximetry as a screening test for congenital heart disease in newborn babies. The chief investigator responsible for the study is based at Birmingham University. The NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children and University College London Institute of Child Health is also undertaking relevant research as part of its work on the molecular basis of childhood disease.

Cardiovascular System: Children

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to assist the screening of children for cardiovascular problems.

Ann Keen: The Government's Healthy Child Programme recommends that by 72 hours all babies should have a clinical examination of the heart. Those with a suspected abnormality of the heart on examination, or who are at risk of an abnormality, should have an appropriate diagnostic assessment and start treatment for the condition as soon as indicated. The examinations are usually performed by doctors, but can also be carried out by midwives and specialist nurses. The aim of the clinical examination is to pick up a problem as early as possible, so that any treatment can start as early as possible. The examination record is included in the Red Book under Colour, pulses, heart sounds and murmurs for newborns and Murmur, Cyanosis, Femorals for the six to eight weeks examination carried out by general practitioners or trained health visitors. The Red Book provides a record of child development, growth, immunisations and the results of examination and screening tests, and should be given and explained to all parents soon after their baby is born.

Cardiovascular System: Screening

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for North Norfolk of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 2165-66W, on cardiovascular systems: screening, whether his Department is monitoring the location of settings from which vascular checks are being commissioned in each primary care trust area; and if he will make a statement.

Ann Keen: Currently, no data are collected centrally by the Department on which settings primary care trusts (PCTs) are commissioning NHS health checks to take place in. We are working to establish a national minimum data set on NHS health checks, in order to help PCTs and strategic health authorities observe progress of the NHS health check programme locally.

Cardiovascular System: Screening

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will develop national templates to assist primary care trusts in delivering vascular checks in  (a) general practice surgeries,  (b) community pharmacies,  (c) walk-in centres and  (d) other settings.

Ann Keen: The Department has produced a number of national guidance documents, templates and other resources to support primary care trusts deliver the NHS health check (previous called vascular checks). Most recently, in conjunction with the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, it has produced a national template designed to help primary care trusts who wish to commission NHS health checks from community pharmacy. It is available at:
	www.pcc.nhs.uk/302
	In association with primary care contracting, it has also developed a primary care service framework to assist primary care trusts in delivering NHS health checks in general practice surgeries, walk-in centres and other settings. This can be found at:
	www.pcc.nhs.uk/news/531

Care Homes: Standards

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many care homes obtained each score against each of the national minimum standards in the latest year for which figures are available.

Phil Hope: We are informed by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) that the scores against each national minimum standard (NMS) for care homes, for the year ending 31 March 2008-the latest year for which information is available-are as shown in the following tables.
	
		
			  Performance of care homes against each NMS for care homes for older people as at 31 March 2008 
			   Standard not met with major shortfalls  Standard not met with minor shortfalls  Standard met  Standard exceeded 
			   No. of homes  % of homes  No. of homes  % of homes  No. of homes  % of homes  No. of homes  % of homes 
			 Information 198 2 1,778 18 7,362 76 380 4 
			 Contract 136 1 1,269 14 7,720 84 115 1 
			 Needs assessment 138 1 1,079 10 8,466 82 670 6 
			 Meeting needs 257 3 1,171 13 7,230 80 336 4 
			 Trial visits 18 0 218 2 8,503 95 211 2 
			 Intermediate care 80 4 157 7 1,798 84 101 5 
			 Service user plan 367 4 3,541 34 5,691 55 782 8 
			 Healthcare 186 2 1,551 15 7,760 75 882 8 
			 Medication 415 4 3,044 29 6,665 64 250 2 
			 Privacy and dignity 87 1 860 8 8,566 83 854 8 
			 Dying and death 64 1 867 10 7,214 84 481 6 
			 Social contact and activities 178 2 2,194 21 6,452 62 1,557 15 
			 Community contact 6 0 246 2 9,157 88 962 9 
			 Autonomy and choice 55 1 808 8 8,692 84 813 8 
			 Meals and mealtimes 83 1 1,205 12 7,718 74 1,371 13 
			 Complaints 89 1 920 9 8,983 87 390 4 
			 Rights 34 0 273 3 7,975 96 49 1 
			 Protection 203 2 1,597 15 8,316 80 264 3 
			 Premises 264 3 2,532 24 6,530 63 1,057 10 
			 Shared facilities 106 1 1,051 11 7,421 81 601 7 
			 Lavatories and washing facilities 242 3 1,695 19 6,866 75 359 4 
			 Adaptations and equipment 212 2 1,703 19 6,910 76 232 3 
			 Space requirements 54 1 604 7 7,839 88 403 5 
			 Furniture and fittings 133 1 1,659 18 7,010 75 493 5 
			 Heating and lighting 305 3 1,917 21 6,679 73 255 3 
			 Hygiene and infection control 169 2 1,694 16 7,693 74 822 8 
			 Staff complement 273 3 1,636 16 7,950 77 519 5 
			 Qualifications 100 1 1,510 15 7,456 72 1,236 12 
			 Recruitment 473 5 2,064 20 7,478 72 350 3 
			 Staff training 249 2 2,197 21 7,087 68 835 8 
			 Day to day operations 284 3 1,663 16 7,176 69 1,249 12 
			 Ethos 199 2 842 9 6,959 78 945 11 
			 Quality assurance 287 3 2,193 21 7,017 68 858 8 
			 Financial procedures 172 2 769 9 7,108 88 63 1 
			 Service user money 70 1 649 6 9,255 91 192 2 
			 Staff supervision 443 5 2,494 26 6,345 67 192 2 
			 Record keeping 440 5 2,559 29 5,789 65 116 1 
			 Safe working practices 386 4 2,703 26 6,878 66 415 4 
			  Source: CQC database 
		
	
	
		
			  Performance of care homes against each NMS for care homes for younger adults as at 31 March 2008 
			   Standard not met with major shortfalls  Standard not met with minor shortfalls  Standard met  Standard exceeded 
			   No. of homes  % of homes  No. of homes  % of homes  No. of homes  % of homes  No. of homes  % of homes 
			 Information 123 2 1,403 20 5,125 73 349 5 
			 Needs assessment 73 1 567 8 6,175 83 668 9 
			 Meeting needs 139 2 599 9 5,487 84 297 5 
			 Introductory visits 35 1 200 3 5,985 91 359 5 
			 Contract 195 3 1,161 17 5,148 78 131 2 
			 Service user plan 162 2 1,716 23 4,567 61 1,074 14 
			 Decision making 57 1 614 8 5,939 79 907 12 
			 Participation 55 1 533 8 5,436 83 505 8 
			 Risk taking 116 2 1,160 15 5,561 74 677 9 
			 Confidentiality 53 1 507 8 5,633 90 96 2 
			 Personal development 62 1 420 6 5,337 82 682 10 
			 Education and occupation 40 1 567 8 5,670 75 1,234 16 
			 Community links and social inclusion 45 1 491 7 5,915 79 1,064 14 
			 Leisure 72 1 676 10 5,145 75 948 14 
			 Relationships 4 0 158 2 6,560 87 782 10 
			 Daily routines 38 1 382 5 6,186 82 895 12 
			 Meals and mealtimes 43 1 564 8 6,167 82 733 10 
			 Personal support 43 1 451 6 6,155 82 868 12 
			 Healthcare 55 1 711 9 5,898 78 856 11 
			 Medication 160 2 1,865 25 5,193 69 299 4 
			 Ageing and death 76 1 686 12 4,901 83 259 4 
			 Concerns and complaints 31 0 701 9 6,427 85 367 5 
			 Protection 146 2 1,229 16 5,839 78 312 4 
			 Premises 207 3 1,947 26 4,714 63 669 9 
			 Space requirements 55 1 456 7 5,748 87 381 6 
			 Furniture and fittings 84 1 878 13 5,355 80 336 5 
			 Toilets and bathrooms 170 3 1,072 16 5,123 77 266 4 
			 Shared space 74 1 733 11 5,469 83 338 5 
			 Adaptations and equipment 92 1 616 10 5,255 85 189 3 
			 Hygiene and infection control 68 1 841 11 6,161 82 462 6 
			 Roles 78 1 459 7 5,621 90 120 2 
			 Qualities and qualifications 79 1 1,109 15 5,486 73 796 11 
			 Staff team 228 3 1,373 20 4,951 72 289 4 
			 Recruitment 257 3 1,288 17 5,567 75 340 5 
			 Training and development 130 2 1,470 20 5,239 70 624 8 
			 Supervision and support 179 3 1,211 18 5,046 75 312 5 
			 Day to day operations 152 2 1,273 17 5,231 70 863 11 
			 Ethos 109 2 434 7 5,176 81 679 11 
			 Quality assurance 177 2 1,657 22 5,061 67 603 8 
			 Policies and procedures 106 2 1,193 19 4,891 78 87 1 
			 Record keeping 223 3 1,629 26 4,423 69 103 2 
			 Safe working practices 182 2 1,843 25 5,185 69 302 4 
			 Conduct of the service 182 3 964 16 4,783 80 70 1 
			  Source: CQC database

Carers

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent steps he has taken to assist carers.

Phil Hope: 'Carers at the heart of 21st-century families and communities' sets out a number of commitments that are being delivered over the next three years (2008-09 to 2010-11). A copy of which has already been placed in the Library.
	The Carers Grant is currently £240 million a year. It enables local authorities to develop innovative and personalised outcomes reflecting the needs of their local carers. It includes £25 million that councils can use to provide emergency cover for carers when they are suddenly unable to care. This means that, by 2011, we will have invested over £1.7 billion in supporting carers.
	We are investing over £255 million to support carers in the short term. This includes £150 million for planned breaks from carers, up to £38 million to enable carers to be better able to combine paid employment with their caring role through enhanced flexible working opportunities and increased skills training opportunities, and over £6 million to support young carers. This extra funding recognises the value of carers in today's society and their ever-growing importance in the future
	In the last couple of months, we have formally launched a national information service, Carers Direct. The Carers Direct helpline and website enables carers to access a wide range of information and advice on sources of support.
	On 15 July 2009, we announced the 25 primary care trusts and local authorities that have been selected to be the Carers Strategy Demonstrator Sites. These will provide evidence of good practice in respect of providing breaks for carers, health and well-being checks and national health service support for carers.

Carers

Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to ensure that primary care trusts use funding provided for respite for carers;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of carers of people with Parkinson's Disease who had no respite break in the last 12 months.

Phil Hope: Additional funding of £150 million for respite care is included in the 2009-10 and 2010-11 primary care trust (PCT) revenue allocations. This is in addition to the Carers Grant paid to councils across England which is worth £240 million in 2009-10 and which they can use to support carers with breaks and other services.
	The NHS Operating Framework 2009-10 states that PCTs should work with their local authority partners and publish joint plans on how their combined funding will support breaks for carers, including short breaks.
	However, the actual level of spend in each year is for PCTs to decide locally in the light of their local circumstances, and priorities as set out in the NHS Operating Framework and Vital Signs. This includes a vital sign on the proportion of carers receiving a carer's break.
	The NHS Information Centre does not hold information on carers of people with Parkinson's Disease.

Carers: Young People

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his most recent estimate is of the number of young carers; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: I have been asked to reply.
	The 2001 census, which is the only source of national data on the number of carers of all ages, indicated that there were some 175,000 children and young people aged under 18 across the UK who were offering some care to family members, neighbours, friends or others.
	The census records young people who are described by the adults in the household as offering care to their families or communities. This includes young people who are responsible for the care of a family member (which is how young carers are usually defined) plus others who may provide more occasional support for neighbours and friends.

Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how much the Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment spent on staffing in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many  (a) full-time equivalent and  (b) part- time staff are employed the Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment;
	(3)  when Ministers in his Department last met staff of the Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment;
	(4)  what the budget of the Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment has been in each of the last five years;
	(5)  what the cost of the office premises of the Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment was in each of the last five years;
	(6)  what the salary of each member of the board of the Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment was in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: The Committee on Carcinogenicity in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COC) does not employ staff. Ministers have not held meetings with members of COC in the last five years.
	Since 2006 the Health Protection Agency (HPA) have provided a secretariat for COC. The HPA meets the costs of several advisory committees. It is not possible to disaggregate the costs for this committee.
	The COC does not occupy office premises. COC meetings are either held in premises provided by the HPA or the Department.
	COC does not have a board. Members of the COC are not paid a salary. An attendance allowance £158 for the chairman and £123 for members, a reading fee £40 for the chairman and £30 for members and travelling expenses are provided.

Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many  (a) full-time equivalent and  (b) part-time staff are employed by the Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment;
	(2)  when Ministers in his Department last met staff of the Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment;
	(3)  what the budget of the Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment has been in each of the last five years;
	(4)  what the cost of the office premises of the Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment was in each of the last five years;
	(5)  what the annual salary of each member of the Board of the Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment was in each of the last five years;
	(6)  how much the Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment has spent on staffing in each of the last five years;
	(7)  how much the Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment has spent on external consultancy in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: The Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment (COMARE) does not employ staff. Ministers have not held meetings with members of COMARE in the last five years.
	Since 2005 the Health Protection Agency (HPA) has provided a secretariat for COMARE. The HPA meets the costs of several advisory committees. It is not possible to disaggregate the costs for this committee.
	COMARE does not occupy office premises. COMARE meetings are either held in premises provided by the HPA or the Department.
	COMARE does not have a board. Members of COMARE are not paid a salary. An attendance allowance (£141.50 for the chairman and £98.50 for members, a reading fee £28.50 for the chairman and £25 for members) and travelling expenses are provided.
	COMARE has not employed external consultants in the last five years.

Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the salary of each member of the Board of the Committee on Medical Effects of Air Pollutants was in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how much the Committee on Medical Effects of Air Pollutants spent on staff in each of the last five years;
	(3)  how many staff the Committee on Medical Effects of Air Pollutants employs; and how many are  (a) full-time and  (b) part-time;
	(4)  how much the Committee on Medical Effects of Air Pollutants spent on external consultancy in each of the last five years;
	(5)  when Ministers in his Department last met staff of the Committee on Medical Effects of Air Pollutants;
	(6)  what the budget of the Committee on Medical Effects of Air Pollutants was in each of the last five years;
	(7)  what the cost of the office premises for the Committee on Medical Effects of Air Pollutants in  (a) Leeds and  (b) London was in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: The Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants (COMEAP) does not employ any staff. Ministers have not held meetings with members of COMEAP in the last five years.
	Since 2006 the Health Protection Agency (HPA) have provided a secretariat for COMEAP. The HPA meets the costs of several advisory committees. It is not possible to disaggregate the costs for this committee.
	COMEAP does not occupy office premises. COMEAP meetings are either held in premises provided by the HPA or the Department.
	COMEAP does not have a board. Members of COMEAP are not paid a salary. An attendance allowance (£158 for the chairman and £123 for members, a reading fee £40 for the chairman and £30 for members) and travelling expenses are provided.
	COMEAP employed external consultants in 2007 to produce peer reviews of the latest report on Long term exposure to air pollution: Effect on mortality at a total cost of £4,000.

Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has issued to patient and service user groups on claiming for travel costs associated with attendance at meetings of the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence between 5 March and 5 June 2009.

Ann Keen: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State does not issue any guidance to patient and service user groups on claiming for travel costs associated with the attendance at meetings of the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence. However, guidance available on the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence website in March 2009 was revised in May 2009 to bring it in line with the Department's best practice guidance 'Reward and Recognition'. The Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence pays reasonable travel expenses to attend meetings and events (excluding their Council meetings) to those who are self financing or unemployed.

Counselling: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many specialist counselling services the NHS provided in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point in the latest period for which figures are available.

Phil Hope: This information is not held centrally.

Damian McBride

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date he last met Mr Damian McBride in the course of his official duties.

Phil Hope: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has not met with Mr. Damian McBride in the course of his ministerial duties.

Dementia: Drugs

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the report on prescribing of anti-psychotic medication commissioned by his Department; what steps his Department plans to take to reduce reliance on inappropriate use of medication in the management of people with dementia; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: The report from Professor Sube Banerjee on the prescribing of anti-psychotic drugs to people with dementia has now been received by officials in the Department. The report will be published shortly, following normal peer review procedures.

Dementia: Research

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for the future level of funding for dementia research; and what matters relating to such funding will be discussed at the forthcoming research summit held with the Medical Research Council.

Gillian Merron: The dementia research summit to be held on 21 July will bring together a range of experts to help shape the future direction of dementia research in the United Kingdom. It will aim to identify gaps in existing knowledge and prioritise new areas for research investment. In addition to helping to develop a more clearly prioritised research agenda, the summit will also focus on better ways to support the current science base and sharpen its impact.
	The usual practice of the Department's National Institute for Health Research and of the Medical Research Council is not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics: research proposals in all areas compete for the funding available. Future levels of expenditure on dementia research will be determined by the success of relevant bids for funding.

Dental Health: Children

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to provide guidance on dental hygiene to children.

Ann Keen: The Department has just published a revision of Delivering Better Oral Health: An evidence based toolkit for prevention. The aim of the toolkit, which has been distributed to all dental practices in England, is to ensure that dentists and members of dental teams give consistent, evidence based advice to patients and their families on the prevention of dental disease. The toolkit contains advice specific to children 0 to six years, children and young adults from age seven as well as for adults. Guidance includes tooth brushing, use of correct toothpaste and dietary advice. While access to national health service dentistry is improving and the toolkit advises parents and carers to take young children to the dentist, we have also taken initiatives to promote oral health in a community setting. For example, under the Brushing for Life scheme families with young children in areas with higher levels of dental decay are issued with a free pack of fluoride toothpaste and a toothbrush-supported by advice on oral hygiene-when they attend child health clinics, Surestart Children's Centres and other health and pre-school facilities.
	Delivering Better Oral Health: An evidence based toolkit for prevention has been placed in the Library, and is also available online at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_102331

Dental Services

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients received dental treatment on the NHS in  (a) St Ives constituency,  (b) Cornwall and  (c) England in each of the last five years.

Ann Keen: Information is not available in the format requested.
	The number of patients registered with a national health service dentist, in England, as at 31 March, 1997 to 2006 is available in Annex A of the NHS Dental Activity and Workforce Report, England: 31 March 2006. Information is provided by strategic health authority and primary care trust, as well as at a national level.
	This information is based on the old contractual arrangements which were in place up to and including 31 March 2006. This report has already been placed in the Library and is also available on the NHS Information Centre website at:
	www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/dwfactivity
	Under the new dental contractual arrangements, introduced on 1 April 2006, patients do not have to be registered with an NHS dentist to receive NHS care. The closest equivalent measure to 'registration' is the number of patients receiving NHS dental services (patients seen) over a 24-month period. However, this is not directly comparable to the registration data for earlier years.
	Information on the number of patients seen by an NHS dentist in the previous 24 months in England, as at quarterly intervals, from 31 March 2006 to 31 December 2008 is available in Table D3 of Annex 3 of the NHS Dental Statistics for England, Quarter 3; 31 December 2008 report. Information is provided by PCT and SHA, as well as at a national level.
	This report has already been placed in the Library and is also available on the NHS Information Centre website at:
	www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/dentalstats0809q3

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of employees in his Department are on a  (a) flexible working contract and  (b) job share employment contract.

Phil Hope: The Department recognises that flexible working allows staff to combine employment and a career with other responsibilities as well as meeting personal needs. The Department encourages staff to work flexibly through providing opportunities such as part time working, job sharing, term time only working and the use of flexitime. It also provides the technology to allow staff to work at home on occasions and has in place specific arrangements to allow parents, adopters, guardians and foster carers of children under 16 (or disabled children under 18) to apply to work flexibly.
	Managers have the discretion to agree flexible working arrangements locally, without making contractual changes. These arrangements are not recorded centrally so the percentage of staff working flexibly is not available but is likely to be a large fraction of the work force.
	According to the Department's centrally held records (the Business Management System) at 1 April 2009 approximately 0.3 per cent, of civil servants in the Department were in job share arrangements. Approximately 9 per cent. were working part-time and approximately 0.2 per cent. were working in term time only.

Departmental Postal Services

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department spent on Royal Mail services in each of the last two years.

Phil Hope: The Department has spent the following amounts on Royal Mail in the last two years:
	
		
			   Total spend (£) 
			 2007-08 170,608.43 
			 2008-09 138,416.00

Diabetes: Health Education

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will provide guidance for people with diabetes on eating recommended daily amounts of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Ann Keen: The Department has no plans to issue specific nutritional guidance for people with diabetes. We recommend that everybody, including those with diabetes, should eat a healthy balanced diet, which includes five servings of fruit and vegetables a day. Eating a healthy balanced diet, and taking regular physical activity are key parts of good diabetes management, and can help to prevent or delay the onset of long-term complications of the condition.

Driving Under Influence

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many drug-related finished hospital admissions with a primary or secondary diagnosis of road traffic accidents there have been for  (a) males and  (b) females aged (i) under 18, (ii) between 18 and 25, (iii) between 26 and 30, (iv) between 31 and 50, (v) between 51 and 70 and (vi) over 71 in each (A) region and (B) primary care trust area in each year since 1997.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 14 July 2009
	This information is not collected centrally.
	There is no way of identifying whether a patient's admission was drug related or not. For example, a patient may have a drug poisoning code recorded on their episode of care, but this could be due to the over-prescription of a drug while in hospital, and does not necessarily signify that the patient came into hospital intoxicated. For these reasons the joint appearance of a drug poisoning code and a road traffic accident (RTA) code on a record of an episode of care does not signify that the patient was intoxicated at the time of the RTA.

Drugs

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with pharmaceutical manufacturers on the availability of medicines; and if he will make a statement.

Mike O'Brien: Ministers have had no recent meetings with pharmaceutical manufacturers on this subject. Departmental officials have frequent contact with manufacturers about shortages and discontinuations of drugs.

Drugs: Finance

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies spent on the implementation of drugs policies in each category in each of the last 10 years.

Gillian Merron: The following table sets out the Department's spending on the implementation of drug policies over the last nine years. Data for 2000-01 are unavailable. The table includes funding for the national treatment agency for substance misuse (NTA).
	
		
			  Department of Health expenditure (£ millions to one decimal place) 
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			 Adult PTB 142.0 191.0 236.0 253.0 300.0 385.0 398.0 398.0 406.0 
			 Mainstream funding (PCT) 145 131 200 204 208 212 202 208 (1) - 
			 Young people's PTB 0.0 0.0 0.0 15 24 24.6 24.7 24.7 24.7 
			 Prison clinical services (IDTS) 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 7.8 11.5 23.2 39.7 
			 NTA central costs 2.1 5.5 5.5 5.5 5.7 10.5 11.6 11.6 11.6 
			 Frank (DH contribution) 0.0 0.0 1.8 2.6 1.3 3.1 2.0 2.0 2.0 
			 Focal Point(1) 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 (1 )Not finalised  Notes: PTB-pooled drug treatment budget,  PCT-primary care trust, IDTS-integrated drug treatment system. 
		
	
	The UK Focal Point collates data and information on drug misuse in the UK and reports it to the European Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Drug Addiction.
	This table does not include central voluntary sector funding, staff costs, and central programme costs, as these are more difficult to segregate out to demonstrate drugs specific expenditure.

Drugs: Misuse

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many reported incidents of overdoses of prescription drugs there have been of under 18 year olds in  (a) England,  (b) the North-East and  (c) Teesside in each of the last 10 years.

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children aged  (a) under five,  (b) five to nine,  (c) 10 to 16 and (d) 17 to 18 years live in a household where (i) one or (ii) both parents have a substance abuse problem; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: Although the data requested are collected via the National Drugs Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS), the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse (NTA) has identified problems with the quality of this data and it believes that releasing this data in their current form would be misleading. The NTA is addressing these data quality issues and expects to publish this data, with an assessment of its quality, alongside their annual statistics release later in this financial year.

Drugs: Misuse

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what treatments are provided by the NHS for problem drug users; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: The National Health Service provides a range of treatments for drug misuse. 'Models of Care for Treatment of Adult Drug Misusers', published by the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse in 2006, sets out a national framework for the provision of drug misuse treatment services. Types of interventions described include:
	substance misuse related advice and information;
	harm reduction interventions;
	community prescribing interventions: general practitioner prescribing and specialist prescribing;
	structured psychosocial interventions;
	structured day programmes;
	in-patient drug treatment;
	residential rehabilitation; and
	aftercare.
	These interventions are provided as part of a package of care for individuals, and one person may receive a number of these interventions during their time in treatment.
	In addition the NHS works in partnership with other agencies to support the social reintegration of problem drug users to help underpin the process of their becoming drug-free.

Drugs: Rehabilitation

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2009,  Official Report, column 478W, on drugs rehabilitation, how many people in each age group dependent on each drug in each year were resident in each region.

Gillian Merron: The data for 2003-04 are not available centrally. There is no regional breakdown for 2004-05, as regional data were not available for every region that year. The information available, is for 2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08, and has been placed in the Library.

Epilepsy

Chris McCafferty: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the recent letter from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health Services to strategic health authorities on epilepsy.

Ann Keen: A copy of the letter, which is expected to be sent out in the next few days, has been placed in the Library.

EU Law

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the proportion of statutory obligations provided for by legislation on matters for which his Department is responsible which were introduced as a consequence of obligations arising from EU legislation in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of the statutory obligations upon it provided for in legislation introduced as a consequence of obligations arising from EU legislation in the most recent 12 months for which figures are available.

Ann Keen: The information is as follows.
	The Working Time (Amendment) Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/1567)-which implement Article 17(5) third subparagraph of Directive 2003/88/EC concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time.
	Estimate of costs: Nil
	Any costs arising from these changes to the average maximum working week will fall to the national health service, not to the Department. Any additional work for the Department arising from this would be met within existing resources.
	Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) and Blood Safety and Quality (Amendment) Regulations 2008 (SI 2008/941)(1)
	Medicines for Human Use (Prescribing by EEA Practitioners)Regulations 2008 (SI 2008/1692)(2)
	Medical Devices (Amendment) Regulations 2008 (SI 2008/2936)(1)
	Medicines for Human Use (Marketing Authorisations Etc.) Amendment Regulations 2008 (SI 2008/3097)(2)
	(1) To give effect to new EU obligations
	(2) To give effect to existing EU obligations
	Estimate of costs: Nil.
	Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency activities are mostly based on EC legislation they are already funded to do the work either through the medicines fees system or the Departments funding for devices. Therefore the MHRA would do the work within existing resources.

Exercise

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the economy of physical inactivity since 2002.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Department included estimates of the cost of physical inactivity, to the wider economy of England, of £8.2 billion a year in At least five a week-Evidence on the impact of physical activity and its relationship to health, published in 2004.
	More recently, a study of the primary and secondary health care costs attributable to physical inactivity was commissioned and published an estimate of these costs for every primary care trust in England as an Annex to Be active, be healthy-A plan for getting the nation moving, published in February 2009.
	Copies of both publications have already been placed in the Library.

Eyesight: Testing

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many pensioners in Hemsworth have received free eye tests since they were introduced.

Ann Keen: Information is not available in the format requested.
	The number of national health service sight tests, by patient eligibility, in England in 2007-08 is available in Table B3 of Annex C of the General Ophthalmic Services: Activity Statistics for England and Wales: Year Ending 31 March 2008 report.
	Information is provided by primary care trust (PCT) and by strategic health authority (SHA) but is not available by parliamentary constituency. Information on the number of NHS sight tests by patient eligibility is only available at a local level from 2007-08.
	This report, published on 20 November 2008, has already been placed in the Library and is also available on the NHS Information Centre website at:
	www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/gosactivity0708p2
	The number of NHS sight tests, by patient eligibility, in England, from 1996-97 to 2007-08 is available in Table A3, Annex B of the same report. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care is due to publish information for 2008-09 on 19 August 2009.
	From 1 April 1999, eligibility for an NHS sight test was extended to everyone aged 60 or over. Patients may qualify for an NHS sight test on more than one criterion. However, they would only be recorded against one criterion on the form. Patients are more likely to be recorded according to their clinical need rather than their age. For example, a patient aged over 60, with glaucoma is likely to be recorded in the glaucoma category only. The count by eligibility is therefore approximate. Patients may also have had more than one sight test in the specified time period.

Food: Chemical Analysis

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will have discussions with Tower Hamlets Council on its budgetary provision for the chemical analysis of food.

Gillian Merron: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has reviewed the Tower Hamlets annual monitoring returns and is satisfied that budgetary provision is being made by Tower Hamlets for chemical sampling, and that the council are fulfilling the responsibilities for sampling set out in the Statutory Food Law Code of Practice. FSA monitoring returns since 2006 for Tower Hamlets shows that sampling has been carried out for a range of issues including composition, contamination and labelling of food in addition to microbiological sampling. On this basis, discussions with Tower Hamlets on budgetary provision for the chemical analysis of food are considered unnecessary.

Food: Safety

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the reasons are for the reduction in the number of public analysts in the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: The Food Standards Agency believes that there are two main factors that have led to the decline in overall numbers of public analysts in the United Kingdom. First, public analysts are retiring at a faster rate than they are being recruited; 60 per cent., of the current population are over 50 years and the rate for successful completion of the MChemA qualification is only one per year. Secondly, as the number of public analyst laboratories is falling there maybe less incentive for people to undertake the MChemA (which is a required qualification to become a public analysts and takes an average of six years to complete).

Food: Safety

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons the Food Standards Agency's review of public analyst services has not been completed; when he expects it will be completed; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) commenced a review of the public analyst service in 2007 (in consultation with the Association of Public Analysts) to address concerns over the decline in the public analyst service. Although the majority of the work on issues was completed in 2007, the refocusing of resources within the FSA resulted in a delay in carrying out a full public consultation.
	The FSA is now putting together a stakeholder working group to look at reviewing and amending the Food Safety (Sampling and Qualifications) Regulations 1990 in order to enable suitably qualified people, other than those holding a Masters in Chemical Analysis, to become official food analysts. The FSA is making these proposals as part of requirements under European Union food and feed law to ensure that there are sufficient numbers of suitably qualified and experienced staff; and appropriate facilities and equipment to undertake official controls within the United Kingdom.
	The results of this work will be published later this year.

Food: Safety

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the performance of local authorities in monitoring food safety and enforcing food safety standards.

Gillian Merron: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) assesses the performance of local authorities on food safety matters on an annual basis. The last assessment was done in February 2009, and the Board paper which makes up the assessment and shows the local authority enforcement activities can be found at:
	www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/pdfs/board/info090201.pdf
	Each year the FSA Board assesses local authority performance on food safety matters. The FSA Board examines data reports from monitoring and audit checks to assess local authority performance in enforcing food safety legislation. FSA powers to carry out these activities are set out in under the Food Standards Act 1999.
	The FSA Board examine both national trends and the position of individual authorities.
	Where an individual local authority reports figures which are not considered to be acceptable, further inquiries are made of that authority, and the FSA will, if appropriate, use its powers formally to audit that authority's services.

General Practitioners: Home Visits

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to encourage GPs to make home visits outside surgery hours.

Mike O'Brien: The Department has not issued specific guidance on home visits for general practitioner (GPs) working during the out-of-hours period- 6.30 pm to 8 am on weekdays, and the whole of weekends and Bank Holidays. The decision to undertake a home visit is a matter of clinical judgment at any time.
	All out-of hours services must be delivered to the National Quality Requirements, ensuring patients have access to consistently high quality and responsive care, regardless of where they live.
	The Requirements stipulate that:
	patients will be guaranteed a GP consultation-including a home visit if there is a clinical need;
	patients are treated by the clinician best equipped to meet their needs in the most appropriate location; and
	services will be regularly audited to ensure that patients are receiving quality care.

General Practitioners: Working Hours

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many GP practices in  (a) Lancashire and  (b) England are closed at lunchtimes on weekdays.

Mike O'Brien: Data on general practitioner (GP) practices' opening hours is not collected centrally, but under the nationally negotiated general medical services (GMS) contract, GP practices are responsible for delivering primary medical care services to their patients from 8am to 6:30pm Monday to Friday, except Good Friday, Christmas day or bank holidays. Practices can place information of their opening times for patients to access on the NHS Choices website.

Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment.

Phil Hope: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has no current plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer recess.

Haemophilia: Compensation

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the cost of implementing in full the recommendation of the Archer Inquiry into Contaminated Blood and Blood Products on compensation for haemophiliacs infected through contaminated blood products; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 20 July 2009
	No estimate has been made of the cost of implementing in full the recommendation of the Archer Inquiry into Contaminated Blood and Blood Products on compensation for haemophiliacs infected through contaminated blood products as Lord Archer's report did not quantify the levels of compensation he was recommending.

Haemophilia: HIV Infection

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many haemophiliacs known to have been infected with HIV through contaminated blood products were alive on the latest date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: As at 31 March 2009 346 haemophiliacs, known to have been infected with HIV through contaminated blood products, are still alive.

Health Services: Overseas Visitors

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to respond to the results of his Department's consultation on proposals on eligibility of overseas visitors for free primary medical services; what the reasons are for the time taken to respond; and if he will place in the Library a copy of each of the unpublished consultation responses.

Gillian Merron: A summary of the responses to the 2004 consultation Proposals to Exclude Overseas Visitors from Eligibility to Free NHS Primary Medical Services was published on 10 June and can be viewed at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Consultations/Responsestoconsultations/DH_100608
	A copy has been placed in the Library.
	The complex issues raised in the complete responses to the 2004 consultation needed to feed into the joint Department of Health and Home Office review enforcing the rules: A new strategy to ensure and enforce compliance with our immigration laws.
	The Government's final conclusions and its associated finding were announced in the written ministerial statement on 20 July 2009,  Official Report, column 97WS.

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill 1990

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will place in the Library a copy of each document in his Department's file INW0014/0030/0008/VO1 HFE Bill 1990 Lords Consideration of Commons Amendments; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will place in the Library a copy of each document in his Department's file INW0014/0030/0010/VO1 HFE Bill 1990 Various Papers; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  if he will place in the Library a copy of each document in his Department's file INW0014/0030/0005/VO1 HFE Bill 1990 Commons 2nd Reading; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  if he will place in the Library a copy of each document in his Department's file INW0014/0030/0006/VO1 HFE Bill 1990 Commons Committee; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: The Department does hold these files. It will take some time to review the information requested and we shall endeavour to do so within 20 working days, (the period of time that would apply had the hon. Member submitted the questions as Freedom of Information requests). I will write to the hon. Member in due course and place a copy of my letter in the Library.

Hospitals: Admissions

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital admissions of patients of each age group there were in Suffolk where the primary or secondary diagnosis was drug-related in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: The number of total admissions to hospital in the Suffolk primary care trust area, which the primary or secondary diagnosis of the patient was drug related, broken down by age for 2003-04 to 2007-08 are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Activity in English NHS hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector 
			   Year (of end of first period of care in patient's hospital stay) 
			  Age  2007-08  2006-07  2005-06  2004-05  2003-04 
			 Under 15 127 137 164 221 178 
			 15 to 64 1,559 1,559 1,564 1,514 1,732 
			 65+ 552 606 579 529 489 
			 Unknown 3 - 1 - - 
			  Notes: 1. There is no way to distinguish between illegal and legal drugs and although the patient may be given a drug related diagnosis.  2. Finished admission episodes  A finished admission episode is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. Admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.  3. Data Quality  Hospital episode statistics (HES) are compiled from data sent by over 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England. The Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain.  4. Assessing growth through time  HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. During the years that these records have been collected from the NHS there have been ongoing improvements in quality and coverage. These improvements in information submitted by the NHS have been particularly marked in the earlier years and need to be borne in mind when analysing time series.  Changes in NHS practice also need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. For example a number of procedures may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and may no longer be accounted in the HES data. This may account for any reductions in activity over time. 5. Number of episodes in which the patient had a (named) primary or secondary diagnosis-drug related  These figures represent the number of episodes where the diagnosis was recorded in any of the 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) primary and secondary diagnosis fields in a HES record. Each episode is only counted once in each count, even if the diagnosis is recorded in more than one diagnosis field of the record. 
			 6. The ICD-10 codes used to identify a drug related diagnosis are as follows (alcohol and tobacco codes have been removed as requested). Please note: A 'drug' can be defined, broadly speaking, as any substance that alters normal bodily function. Therefore we have included codes relating to noxious substances and solvents. It is not possible to identify in ICD-10 all diseases caused by drugs (legal or illegal) and there is no way to guarantee, that the admission was drug related. For example, a patient admitted for inguinal hernia surgery may also be dependent on a drug.  F11-Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of opioids  F12-Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of cannabinoids  F13-Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of sedatives or hypnotics  F14-Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of cocaine  F15-Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of other stimulants, including caffeine  F16-Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of hallucinogens F18-Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of volatile solvents  F19-Mental and behavioural disorders due to multiple drug use and use of other psychoactive substances  F55-Abuse of non-dependence-producing substances  K71.0 Toxic liver disease with cholestasis  K71.1 Toxic liver disease with hepatic necrosis  K71.2 Toxic liver disease with acute hepatitis  K71.3 Toxic liver disease with chronic persistent hepatitis  K71.4 Toxic liver disease with chronic lobular hepatitis  K71.5 Toxic liver disease with chronic active hepatitis  K71.6 Toxic liver disease with hepatitis, not elsewhere classified  K71.7 Toxic liver disease with fibrosis and cirrhosis of liver  K71.8 Toxic liver disease with other disorders of liver  K71.9 Toxic liver disease, unspecified  T36-Poisoning by systemic antibiotics  T37-Poisoning by other systemic anti-infectives and antiparasitics  T38-Poisoning by hormones and their synthetic substitutes and antagonists, not elsewhere classified  T39-Poisoning by nonopioid analgesics, antipyretics and antirheumatics  T40-Poisoning by narcotics and psychodysleptics [hallucinogens]  T41-Poisoning by anaesthetics and therapeutic gases  T42-Poisoning by antiepileptic, sedative-hypnotic and antiparkinsonism drugs  T43-Poisoning by psychotropic drugs, not elsewhere classified  T44-Poisoning by drugs primarily affecting the autonomic nervous system  T45-Poisoning by primarily systemic and haematological agents, not elsewhere classified  T46-Poisoning by agents primarily affecting the cardiovascular system  T47-Poisoning by agents primarily affecting the gastrointestinal system  T48-Poisoning by agents primarily acting on smooth and skeletal muscles and the respiratory system  T49-Poisoning by topical agents primarily affecting skin and mucous membrane and by ophthalmological, otorhinolaryngological and dental drugs  T50-Poisoning by diuretics and other and unspecified drugs, medicaments and biological substances  T52-Toxic effect of organic solvents  T53-Toxic effect of halogen derivatives of aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons  T54-Toxic effect of corrosive substances  T55-Toxic effect of soaps and detergents  T56-Toxic effect of metals  T57-Toxic effect of other inorganic substances  T58-Toxic effect of carbon monoxide  T59-Toxic effect of other gases, fumes and vapours  T60-Toxic effect of pesticides  T61-Toxic effect of noxious substances eaten as seafood  T62-Toxic effect of other noxious substances eaten as food  T63-Toxic effect of contact with venomous animals  T64-Toxic effect of aflatoxin and other mycotoxin food contaminants  T65-Toxic effect of other and unspecified substances  X40-Accidental poisoning by and exposure to nonopioid analgesics, antipyretics and antirheumatics  X41-Accidental poisoning by and exposure to antiepileptic, sedative-hypnotic, antiparkinsonism and psychotropic drugs, not elsewhere classified  X42-Accidental poisoning by and exposure to narcotics and psychodysleptics [hallucinogens], not elsewhere classified 
			 X43-Accidental poisoning by and exposure to other drugs acting on the autonomic nervous system X44-Accidental poisoning by and exposure to other and unspecified drugs, medicaments and biological substances  X46-Accidental poisoning by and exposure to organic solvents and halogenated hydrocarbons and their vapours  X47-Accidental poisoning by and exposure to other gases and vapours  X48-Accidental poisoning by and exposure to pesticides  X49-Accidental poisoning by and exposure to other and unspecified chemicals and noxious substances  X60-Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to nonopioid analgesics, antipyretics and antirheumatics  X61-Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to antiepileptic, sedative-hypnotic, antiparkinsonism and psychotropic drugs, not elsewhere classified  X62-Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to narcotics and psychodysleptics [hallucinogens], not elsewhere classified  X63-Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to other drugs acting on the autonomic nervous system  X64-Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to other and unspecified drugs, medicaments and biological substances X66-Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to organic solvents and halogenated hydrocarbons and their vapours  X67-Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to other gases and vapours  X68-Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to pesticides  X69-Intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to other and unspecified chemicals and noxious substances Y40-Systemic antibiotics  Y41-Other systemic anti-infectives and antiparasitics  Y42-Hormones and their synthetic substitutes and antagonists, not elsewhere classified  Y43-Primarily systemic agents  Y44-Agents primarily affecting blood constituents  Y45-Analgesics, antipyretics and anti-inflammatory drugs  Y46-Antiepileptic and antiparkinsonism drugs  Y47-Sedatives, hypnotics and antianxiety drugs  Y48-Anaesthetics and therapeutic gases  Y49-Psychotropic drugs, not elsewhere classified  Y50-Central nervous system stimulants, not elsewhere classified  Y51-Drugs primarily affecting the autonomic nervous system  Y52-Agents primarily affecting the cardiovascular system  Y53-Agents primarily affecting the gastrointestinal system  Y54-Agents primarily affecting water-balance and mineral and uric acid metabolism  Y55-Agents primarily acting on smooth and skeletal muscles and the respiratory system  Y56-Topical agents primarily affecting skin and mucous membrane and ophthalmological, otorhinolaryngological and dental drugs  Y57-Other and unspecified drugs and medicaments  Y58-Bacterial vaccines  Y59-Other and specified vaccines and biological substances  T80.0 Air embolism following infusion, transfusion and therapeutic injection  T80.1 Vascular complications following infusion, transfusion and therapeutic injection  T80.2 Infections following infusion, transfusion and therapeutic injection  T80.8 Other complications following infusion, transfusion and therapeutic injection  T80.9 Unspecified complication following infusion, transfusion and therapeutic injection  T88.0 Infection following immunization  T88.1 Other complications following immunization, not elsewhere classified  T88.2 Shock due to anaesthesia  T88.3 Malignant hyperthermia due to anaesthesia  T88.5 Other complications of anaesthesia  T88.6 Anaphylactic shock due to adverse effect of correct drug or medicament properly administered  T88.7 Unspecified adverse effect of drug or medicament  Z71.5 Drug abuse counselling and surveillance  T96.X Sequelae of poisoning by drugs, medicaments and biological substances  T97.X Sequelae of toxic effects of substances chiefly non-medicinal as to source  Z50.3 Drug rehabilitation 
			 7. Suffolk PCT of residences  From 2006-07 onwards Suffolk as a whole was a PCT. Prior to this, Suffolk was made up of four PCTs. Reference should be made as follows for details.  2006-07 onwards  5PT-Suffolk PCT  Pre 2005-06  5JR-Suffolk Coastal  5JQ-Ipswich  5JT-Central Suffolk  5JW-Suffolk West  8. Ungrossed Data  Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (i.e. the data are ungrossed).   Sources:  Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The Information Centre for health and social care  NHS Information centre for health and social care.

Hospitals: Admissions

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) hospital admissions and  (b) finished consultant episodes there were (i) in England and (ii) at (A) Ashford Hospital, (B) Hillingdon Hospital, (C) Ealing Hospital, (D) West Middlesex University Hospital and (E) Teddington Memorial Hospital in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: Data on hospital admission are not collected at individual hospital level. The information collected is at national health service trust or primary care trust (PCT) level. Data on hospital admissions in the relevant provider NHS trusts and PCT and for England are shown in the following tables.
	
		
			  Count of Finished Admission Episodes and Finished Consultant Episodes for England and Selected NHS Trusts: Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector 
			   England  Ashford and St. Peter's NHS Trust  Hillingdon Hospital NHS Trust 
			   Finished admission episodes  Finished consultant episodes  Finished admission episodes  Finished consultant episodes  Finished admission episodes  Finished consultant episodes 
			 2007-08 13,479,828 15,359,062 64,454 68,405 55,673 59,939 
			 2006-07 12,976,273 14,784,581 59,689 62,272 53,645 57,757 
			 2005-06 12,678,628 14,423,506 61,623 65,593 50,810 55,353 
			 2004-05 12,101,986 13,706,450 60,939 65,743 46,414 51,304 
			 2003-04 11,809,017 13,295,166 58,857 64,299 42,224 45,788 
		
	
	
		
			   Ealing Hospital NHS Trust  Richmond and Twickenham PCT 
			   Finished admission episodes  Finished consultant episodes  Finished admission episodes  Finished consultant episodes 
			 2007-08 41,471 47,567 361 361 
			 2006-07 38,171 43,195 416 416 
			 2005-06 33,428 36,329 444 444 
			 2004-05 31,211 33,692 470 470 
			 2003-04 29,912 32.233 355 355 
			  Notes:  Finished admission episodes (a) A finished admission episode is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one health care provider. Finished admission episodes are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.  Finished Consultant Episode (FCE) (b) A finished consultant episode (FCE) is defined as a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which they end. Please note that the figures do not represent the number of different patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the same stay in hospital or in different stays in the same year.  Data quality Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England. Data are also received from a number of independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain.  Assessing growth through time HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. The quality and coverage of the data have improved over time. These improvements in information submitted by the NHS have been particularly marked in the earlier years and need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. Some of the increase in figures for later years (particularly 2006-07 onwards) may be due to the improvement in the coverage of independent sector activity. Changes in NHS practice also need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. For example, a number of procedures may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and may no longer be accounted for in the HES data. This may account for any reductions in activity over time.  Hospital Providers A provider code is a unique code that identifies an organisation acting as a health care provider (e.g. NHS Trust or PCT). Hospital providers can also include Treatment Centres (TC). Treatment Centres (also known as Diagnostic Centres) provide elective (planned) surgery for a range of conditions, mainly for day surgery or short-term hospital stay patients. Some Treatment Centres are attached to hospital trusts and HES enables data for these to be separately identified from the rest of the healthcare provider's data. It does this by adding TC to the Trust code; if there is more than one per Trust T1, T2, T3 etc are suggested unless already in use by the Trust. Activity performed in the remainder of the Trust is identified by the health care provider code being followed by an 'X'. Hospital providers beginning with an 'N' indicates an independent sector health care provider.  Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The NHS Information Centre for health and social care

Hospitals: Waiting Lists

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time for  (a) in-patient admissions and  (b) first outpatient appointments was in each speciality in (i) Derbyshire County Primary Care Trust and (ii) England in the latest period for which figures are available.

Mike O'Brien: The Department does not collect in-patient and out-patient data at specialty level, except for trauma and orthopaedics. The latest data for May 2009, showing in-patient and out-patient median waiting times for Derbyshire County primary care trust (PCT) and England is shown in the following tables.
	
		
			  Median in-patient waiting time for elective admission (weeks) May 2009 (commissioner based) 
			  Specialty  Derbyshire County PCT  England 
			 Trauma and Orthopaedics 5.2 5.4 
			 All Specialties 3.6 4.3 
			  Source: Department of Health Monthly Waiting List Collection MMRCOM 
		
	
	
		
			  Median out-patient waiting time for elective admission (weeks) May 2009 (commissioner based) 
			  Specialty  Derbyshire County PCT  England 
			 Trauma and Orthopaedics 2.4 2.9 
			 All Specialties 2.3 2.8 
			  Source: Department of Health Monthly Waiting List Collection MMRCOM

Hospitals: Working Hours

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has undertaken into levels of availability of medical services in hospitals at weekends.

Mike O'Brien: The Department has not funded any research into the levels of availability of medical services in hospitals at weekends.

Human-Animal Hybrid Embryos

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what legislative provisions govern the examination of human admixed embryos which have been stored in licensed premises for the purposes of investigating an offence under the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990.

Gillian Merron: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, as amended by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008, provides that no one shall bring about the creation of an human admixed embryo or keep or use such an embryo except in pursuit of a licence from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority. This includes where human admixed embryos are being kept, examined or stored in connection with the investigation of, or proceedings for, an offence under the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (as amended by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008). Therefore, examination, keeping or use of such an embryo must take place at licensed premises.

Independent Reconfiguration Panel

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many staff the Independent Reconfiguration Panel employs; and how many  (a) full-time equivalent and  (b) part-time staff there are;
	(2)  how much the Independent Reconfiguration Panel spent on external consultancy in each of the last five years;
	(3)  how much the Independent Reconfiguration Panel spent on staffing in each of the last five years;
	(4)  what the salary of each member of the board of the Independent Reconfiguration Panel was in each of the last five years;
	(5)  what the cost of office premises occupied by the Independent Reconfiguration Panel was in each of the last five years;
	(6)  what the budget of the Independent Reconfiguration Panel was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The Independent Reconfiguration Panel (IRP) is an advisory non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department of Health and does not employ any staff directly. The Panel has a part-time chair who is a public appointment, a full-time chief executive employed by the NHS Business Services Authority, a full-time secretary to the panel employed by the Department, and one agency administrative staff.
	As stated in previous responses to the hon. Member 3 November 2008,  Official Report, column 79W and 26 November 2008,  Official Report, column 2062W; all expenditure associated with the running of the IRP is met by the Department. Expenditure on IRP functions is not separately identified or reported on within Departmental costs. The Department does not set an annual budget with the IRP. Since its inception in 2003, IRP expenditure has been authorised by the Department for annual costs to reflect expenditure reasonably incurred to address ad hoc and irregular requests from the Secretary of State for Health to the Panel for authoritative advice on contested service changes, referred to him by local Overview and Scrutiny Committees in line with the Panel's terms of reference.
	An exercise was undertaken recently to look at the detail of expenditure associated with the IRP's activity in 2008-09, some of the results of which are summarised in response to your questions.
	The total expenditure, including employment costs, of the IRP in 2008-09 was approximately £930,000.
	For the staff listed, the approximate total cost of salaries in 2008-09 was £250,000. The IRP has a number of members, details of whom can be found on the IRP's website:
	www.irpanel.org.uk/view.asp?id=47
	These members do not receive a salary but are entitled to claim a fee of £140 per day and normal expenses in line with Civil Service rates when they are engaged on IRP activity. The approximate total cost of members' fees was £22,000 in 2008-09. The Panel appoints external contractors to support specific reviews at an approximate cost of £312,000 in 2008-09.
	The approximate total of all costs associated with the IRP offices, including rates and utilities, was £130,000 in 2008-09. The approximate total of all costs relating to the provision of media and communications services was £80,000 in 2008-09.

Independent Reconfiguration Panel

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when Ministers in his Department last met staff of the Independent Reconfiguration Panel.

Mike O'Brien: Alan Johnson, as Secretary of State for Health, met Dr. Peter Barrett, chair, and Richard Jeavons, chief executive, of the Independent Reconfiguration Panel (IRP) on 1 June 2009.
	An introductory meeting between Andy Burnham, Secretary of State for Health, Dr. Peter Barrett and Richard Jeavons is planned shortly.

Influenza: Health Services

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what public awareness campaigns his Department has undertaken in respect of the  (a) interim and  (b) full National Pandemic Flu Service; what steps he has taken to measure public awareness; how much each campaign has cost; and what estimate he has made of levels of public awareness of each service.

Gillian Merron: The Department of Health is carrying out an awareness campaign to publicise the interim National Pandemic Flu Service (NPFS) which it is anticipated will be launched in late July in England. As the differences between the interim and full service are technical and will not significantly affect the public's experience of the service, the publicity will not refer to these differences.
	The campaign, which it is anticipated will start in late July, includes national press and radio advertising and digital search activity.
	The cost of the campaign is around £2.4 million.
	Levels of awareness of the service are being measured by tracking research which is being carried out to check awareness, knowledge and understanding of swine flu by the public.

Kidneys: Health Education

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 8 July 2009,  Official Report, column 868W, on kidneys: health education, what plans he has to promote the Knowing the symptoms of Kidney disease self assessment tool on the NHS Choices website; and what plans he has to link it to other relevant websites offering information on kidney disease.

Ann Keen: The kidney disease self assessment tool on the NHS Choices website is being promoted via editorial features, clinical information articles, blogs, news stories and links across the national health service website and partner websites including primary care trusts. The self-assessment tool can be found at:
	www.nhs.uk/tools/pages/kidneydisease.aspx
	It is also included within the NHS Health Check area of the website and has been the lead story on the NHS home page on two occasions-at launch in January and in March to support World Kidney Day.
	The tool is published via a syndication programme on a growing number of partner websites including popular lifestyle websites such as iVillage, and AOL.

KPMG

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department paid to KPMG in each month of the last five years.

Phil Hope: The following table specifies the total payments from the Department to KPMG by month and year. The table will include all services provided by KPMG including management consultancy as well as finance, tax and audit services.
	
		
			  £ 
			   2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  2009 
			 January - 121,906 318,791 707,812 676,065 594,755 
			 February - 194,128 2,490,903 300,824 144,181 336,490 
			 March - 534,310 1,661,831 335,898 393,844 1,894,728 
			 April 123,507 316,839 637,985 740,423 153,774 1,140,818 
			 May 628,152 456,454 952,587 897,818 384,591 795,688 
			 June 850,813 330,429 459,434 498,333 313,807 154,509 
			 July 31,725 348,490 658,102 344,328 0 - 
			 August 183,217 352,860 455,245 523,052 447,809 - 
			 September 1,048,185 1,098,623 759,560 589,571 111,625 - 
			 October 169,815 570,328 131,270 279,110 275,364 - 
			 November 459,627 540,022 134,092 186,671 39,269 - 
			 December 502,110 470,994 303,796 133,597 90,223 - 
			 Total 3,997,151 5,335,383 8,963,595 5,537,436 3,030,552 4,916,987

Meat Hygiene Service: Redundancy

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were made redundant from the Meat Hygiene Service in the last 12 months.

Gillian Merron: In the period 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009, 124 people left the Meat Hygiene Service on redundancy or early retirement terms. Of these, 85 left voluntarily and 39 left on a compulsory basis.

Methadone: Admissions

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital admissions for methanol poisoning were recorded in each region in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: Data have been given by year, and not by region, to prevent any identification of individuals.
	
		
			  Number of hospital admissions where there was a primary diagnosis of methanol poisoning( 1) , in England, from 2003-04 to 2007-08 
			   Number 
			 2003-04 38 
			 2004-05 34 
			 2005-06 37 
			 2006-07 31 
			 2007-08 47 
			  Notes: ( 1)  Primary diagnosis The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and 7 prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital. The data above is where the primary diagnosis is of T51.1 Toxic effect of alcohol - methanol  Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Finished admission episodes are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.  Ungrossed data Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (i.e. the data are ungrossed).  Data quality  HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 national health service trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England. Data is also received from a number of independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain.  Assessing growth through time HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. The quality and coverage of the data have improved over time. These improvements in information submitted by the NHS have been particularly marked in the earlier years and need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. Some of the increase in figures for later years (particularly 2006-07 onwards) may be due to the improvement in the coverage of independent sector activity. Changes in NHS practice also need to be borne in mind when analysing time series. For example, a number of procedures may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and may no longer be accounted for in the HES data. This may account for any reductions in activity over time. Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector.  Source:  Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The NHS Information Centre for health and social care.

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date his Department agreed to support Mid Staffordshire General Hospitals NHS Trust in its application for foundation trust status; which Minister took this decision; and if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's analysis used as the basis for making that decision.

Mike O'Brien: holding answer 20 April 2009
	 The application from Mid Staffordshire General Hospitals NHS Trust secured the then Secretary of State's support on 22 June 2007. The decision was taken on her behalf by the then Minister of State for Delivery and Reform.
	We are placing in the Library the following analyses from May/June 2007:
	an application assessment; this is a completed template summarising relevant information about the applicant;
	a note containing unpublished provisional data on Methicillin-resistant  Staphylococcus aureus and  C. d ifficile; this is an extract from a longer note containing similar information about other applicants considered at the same time;
	a table summarising the trust's position in respect of three questions; the table has been redacted to remove the details of other applicants considered at the same time;
	a financial due diligence report prepared by an external accounting firm; the report has been redacted to remove commercially sensitive information; and
	a submission from officials to the Minister which includes a recommendation to support the application; the submission has been redacted to remove (i) a Restricted marking, (ii) information about applicants other than Mid Staffordshire, and (iii) the names of junior officials.

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the membership was of his Department's Applications Committee at the time at which the Committee discussed foundation status for the Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust.

Mike O'Brien: The Department's Applications Committee was chaired by Andrew Cash, the then Director General of Provider Development, and would have included officials involved in the NHS Foundation Trust process.

Monitor

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much Monitor has spent on external consultancy services in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: We are advised by the chairman of Monitor, (the statutory name of which is the Independent Regulator of NHS Foundation Trusts), that the amount spent on external consultancy services in each of the last five years is as follows.
	
		
			   Monitor spend on external consultancy services (£000) 
			 2004-05 7,880 
			 2005-06 6,259 
			 2006-07 3,099 
			 2007-08 1,536 
			 2008-09 1,901

Monitor

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much Monitor has spent on staffing in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: We are advised by the chairman of Monitor, (the statutory name of which is the Independent Regulator of NHS Foundation Trusts), that it has spent the following amounts on staffing in each of the last five years.
	
		
			   Monitor spend on staff (£000) 
			 2004-05 1,903 
			 2005-06 4,859 
			 2006-07 6,274 
			 2007-08 6,539 
			 2008-09 8,036

Monitor

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) full-time equivalent and  (b) part-time staff are employed by Monitor.

Mike O'Brien: We are advised by the chairman of Monitor, (the statutory name of which is the Independent Regulator of NHS Foundation Trusts), that Monitor employed 88 full-time staff and six part-time staff (total number 94) as at 31 March 2009.

Monitor

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when Ministers in his Department last met staff of Monitor.

Mike O'Brien: Ministers often meet with staff from Monitor. The most recent meeting was on 9 July this year, when I met Stephen Thornton, non-executive director of Monitor, and Adrian Masters, its director of strategy.

Monitor

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the budget of Monitor, the Independent Regulator of NHS Foundation Trusts, was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: We are advised by the chairman of Monitor, (the statutory name of which is the Independent Regulator of NHS Foundation Trusts), that Monitor's budget in each of the last five years was as shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Budget (£000) 
			 2004-05 16,011 
			 2005-06 17,744 
			 2006-07 12,552 
			 2007-08 13,500 
			 2008-09 16,175

Monitor

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of the office premises for Monitor was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: We are advised by the chairman of Monitor, (the statutory name of which is the Independent Regulator of NHS Foundation Trusts), that Monitor has spent the following amounts on office premises.
	
		
			  Monitor 
			   Cost of office premises (£) 
			 2004-05 513,294 
			 2005-06 386,542 
			 2006-07 354,083 
			 2007-08 370,597 
			 2008-09 358,292

Monitor

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the salary of each member of the board of the Monitor was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: We are advised by the chairman of Monitor, (the statutory name of which is the Independent Regulator of NHS Foundation Trusts), that Monitor's executive chairman is the only full-time salaried member of the Monitor's board of directors. Monitor's four non-executive directors are remunerated for their attendance of board meetings and other work related commitments. Details of the remuneration of all Monitor's board members is published each year in Monitor's Annual Report and Accounts, which is laid before Parliament. An extract from Monitor's Annual Report 2008-09 including salary and remuneration of board members is set out in the following table. Copies of all previous annual reports and accounts are available on Monitor's website.
	
		
			  £000 
			   2008-09 Salary Band  2007-08 Salary Band 
			 William Moyes Executive Chairman 235 to 240 215 to 220 
			  Non-executive directors   
			 Christopher Mellor 15 to 20 20 to 25 
			 Jude Goffe 25 to 30 15 to 20 
			 Elaine Murphy 15 to 20 15 to 20 
			 Stephen Thornton 10 to 15 15 to 20

Neurology: Research

Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of his Department's budget was spent on research into  (a) Parkinson's Disease and  (b) all degenerative neurological conditions in (i) 2006-07 and (ii) 2007-08.

Roger Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of the NHS research budget for  (a) 2006-07 and  (b) 2007-08 was spent on research into (i) Parkinson's Disease and (ii) all degenerative neurological conditions.

Gillian Merron: National health service support for degenerative neurological disorder research amounted to 4.5 per cent. of the departmental research and development allocations made to NHS organisations in 2006-07 and to 5.1 per cent. of the allocations made in 2007-08.
	Details of NHS expenditure on research specifically concerned with Parkinson's Disease is not available.

NHS Blood and Transplant

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will instruct NHS Blood and Transplant to adopt pathogen inactivation for  (a) civilian and  (b) military blood supplies; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: Pathogen inactivation is one of the options the independent Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs has been considering for further reducing the infection risk from platelets (a blood component). Ministers will wait for a recommendation from the Committee on the issue. There are no pathogen inactivation systems currently available for red cells, the most widely transfused blood component.

NHS Business Services Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when Ministers in his Department last met staff from the NHS Business Services Authority.

Mike O'Brien: The former Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health, (Ivan Lewis) met with Nick Scholte, chief executive of the NHS Business Services Authority on 18 January 2007.

NHS Business Services Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the budget of the NHS Business Services Authority was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  NHS Business Services Authority-net operating revenue budget (excluding one-off funding, capital charges and capital expenditure) 
			   £000 
			 2006-07 121,400 
			 2007-08 114,500 
			 2008-09 113,100 
		
	
	NHS Business Services Authority was established in 2006 and therefore figures can only be prepared for the last three years.

NHS Business Services Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of office premises for the NHS Business Services Authority was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  NHS Business Services Authority-cost of premises 
			   £000 
			 2006-07 (1)6,426 
			 2007-08 7,009 
			 2008-09 8,247 
			 (1) 2006-07 is an estimated cost of premises based on current and previous years percentage of premises and fixed plant. 
		
	
	NHS Business Services Authority was established in 2006 and therefore figures can only be prepared for the last three years.

NHS Business Services Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the salary of each member of the board of the NHS Business Services Authority was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  NHS Business Services Authority-board member salaries 
			 £ 
			  Name  Start date  End date  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Nicholas Paul Scholte - - 142,106.99 146,081.67 157,460.77 
			 Alistair McDonald - - 101,088.35 103,540.80 110,995.68 
			 William John Smith - - 101,505.01 103,540.80 110,995.68 
			 Jim Orr 3 July 2006 - 87,068.81 119,071.92 127,645.12 
			 Roberta Barker 29 September 2008 - 0.00 0.00 53,083.33 
			 Mike Siswick - 30 September 2008 88,279.26 88,080.45 52,831.20 
			 Paul Rich - - 60,000.00 60,780.00 62,117.16 
			 David Hulf - - 12,500.04 12,662.52 12,941.04 
			 David Teale - - 7,500.00 7,597.56 7,764.72 
			 Jeremy Strachan - - 7,500.00 7,597.56 7,764.72 
			 Anne Galbraith - - 7,500.00 7,597.56 7,764.72 
			 Michael John Harling - - 7,500.00 7,597.56 7,764.72 
		
	
	NHS Business Services Authority was established in 2006 and therefore figures can only be prepared for the last three years.

NHS Business Services Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS Business Services Authority spent on staff in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The information is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  NHS Business Services Authority-cost of staff 
			   £ 000 
			 2006-07 93,310 
			 2007-08 74,673 
			 2008-09 72,674 
		
	
	NHS Business Services Authority was established in 2006 and therefore figures can be prepared only for the last three years.

NHS Business Services Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff the NHS Business Services Authority employs; and how many of those are  (a) full-time and  (b) part-time.

Mike O'Brien: The NHS Business Services Authority has a total staff headcount of 2,911 as at 17 July 2009. Of this figure, 2,112 are full time and 799 are part time.

NHS Business Services Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS Business Services Authority spent on external consultancy in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  NHS Business Services Authority-expenditure on external consultancy 
			   £000 
			 2006-07 181 
			 2007-08 121 
			 2008-09 738 
		
	
	NHS Business Services Authority was established in 2006 and therefore figures can only be prepared for the last three years.

NHS Direct

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many calls NHS Direct has received in each week of 2009.

Mike O'Brien: The number of calls NHS Direct has received each week in 2009 is displayed in the following table.
	
		
			  Week beginning  Calls received 
			 1 January 2009 114,494 
			 8 January 2009 100,451 
			 15 January 2009 102,242 
			 22 January 2009 103,254 
			 29 January 2009 102,719 
			 5 February 2009 104,587 
			 12 February 2009 103,438 
			 19 February 2009 103,445 
			 26 February 2009 103,972 
			 5 March 2009 103,251 
			 12 March 2009 101,961 
			 19 March 2009 102,308 
			 26 March 2009 104,093 
			 2 April 2009 96,043 
			 9 April 2009 118,387 
			 16 April 2009 92,978 
			 23 April 2009 95,256 
			 30 April 2009 118,466 
			 7 May 2009 113,443

NHS Healthcare Innovation Expo

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 30 June 2009,  Official Report, columns 217-8W, on the NHS Innovation Expo, how many NHS staff attended the event; and how much delegates were charged to attend.

Gillian Merron: A total of 5,040 delegates attended the healthcare innovation Expo over the two days. We do not hold information on how many of those delegates were national health service staff; attendees came from a range of backgrounds, including NHS and social care chief executives, clinicians, front-line staff, managers, patients, voluntary organisations, academia and industry.
	In the majority of cases, no charge was made for attendance from the public sector.

NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the annual salary of each member of the board of the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: Annual salaries are as set out in the following table. It should be noted that salaries are reported in bands of £5,000 and in £000, as recorded in NHS Institute annual reports. Notes appear as follows.
	
		
			  Board  m ember  Role  2005- 06  2006- 07  2007- 08  2008- 09 
			 Bernard Crump Chief Executive 100-105 155-160 160-165 175-180 
			 Simone Jordan Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Operating Officer 60-65 120-125 115-120 130-135 
			 Helen Bevan Chief Officer Service Transformation 120-125 120-125 120-125 130-135 
			 Maire Smith Director of Technology and Product Innovation 65-70 115-120 115-120 (1)100-105 
			 Michael Cawley Director of Finance and Business Services 55-60 110-115 110-115 (2)35- 40 
			 Paul Allen Director of Leadership 60-65 110-115 110-115 115-120 
			 Roderick Anthony Acting Chief Finance Officer n/a n/a n/a (3)80-85 
			 Yve Buckland Chair and Chair of Shadow Nominations Committee 45-50 60-65 60-65 60-65 
			 David Bower Non-executive Director 0-5 5-10 5-10 5-10 
			 Tony Butterworth Non-executive Director 0-5 5-10 5-10 5-10 
			 Mike Collier Vice Chair and Chair of the Audit Committee 0-5 10-15 10-15 10-15 
			 Michael Deegan Non-executive Director 0-5 5-10 5-10 5-10 
			 Noorzaman Rashid Non-executive Director n/a n/a (4)0-5 5-10 
			 Carol Black Non-executive Director n/a 5-10 5-10 5-10 
			 Andrew Smith Non-executive Director n/a n/a 5-10 (5)5-10 
			 Joe Liddane Non-executive Director n/a n/a n/a (6)0-5 
			 Michael Lander Non-executive Director n/a n/a n/a (7)0-5 
			 Dennis Sherwood Non-executive Director 0-5 (8)0-5 - - 
			 (1) Maire Smith left her post on 31 January 2009. in addition to basic salary, other contractual remuneration and benefits in kind received during the year, she also received an additional payment of £20,000 on termination of her contract. (2) Michael Cawley left his post on 31 July 2008 on secondment to East Midlands Strategic Health Authority. (3) Roderick Anthony commenced in post on 1 August 2008. (4) Noorzaman Rashid commenced his post on 1 October 2007 (5) Andrew Smith left his post on 31 January 2009 (6) Joe Liddane commenced his post on 1 March 2009 (7) Michael Lander commenced his post on 1 March 2009 (8) Dennis Sherwood resigned from his post on 31 October 2006 
		
	
	It should be noted that salaries for 2005-06 are not, in many cases for the full year as the NHS Institute was not fully established until July 2005 and so some salaries are for part year only.

NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement spent on staffing in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: This is set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Staff costs (including seconded, contract and agency staff) 
			   £ 
			 2005-06 8,553,000 
			 2006-07 9,297,000 
			 2007-08 10,567,000 
			 2008-09 12,937,000

NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when Ministers in his Department last met staff of the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement.

Mike O'Brien: Dame Yve Buckland, Chair of the NHS Institute met with my noble Friend Lord Darzi on 21 April 2009.
	Professor Bernard Crump, CEO met with my noble Friend Lord Darzi on 3 June 2009 at the Department of Health.

NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the budget of the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: This is set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Annual budget  £ 
			 2005-06 61,912,000 
			 2006-07 56,231,000 
			 2007-08 73,531,000 
			 2008-09 (1)80,790,000 
			 2009-10 69,730,000 
			 (1 )Inc. National Library for Health costs, since transferred out.

NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement has spent on external consultancy services in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: This information is set out in the following table:
	
		
			   External consultancy fees (£) 
			 2005-06 n/a 
			 2006-07 515,137 
			 2007-08 872,827 
			 2008-09 2,274,634

NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) full-time equivalent and  (b) part- time staff the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improvement employs.

Mike O'Brien: As at May 2009 the NHS Institute has 184 total headcount-23 are part time staff and 161 are full-time equivalent.

NHS Litigation Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when Ministers in his Department last met staff of the NHS Litigation Authority.

Ann Keen: Ministers in the Department last met staff of the NHS Litigation Authority on 11 October 2005.

NHS Litigation Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the budget of the NHS Litigation Authority was in each of the last five years;
	(2)  what the salary of each member of the board of the NHS Litigation Authority was in each of the last five years.

Ann Keen: The NHS Litigation Authority publishes the information requested in its annual Report and Accounts. Copies are available in the Library.

NHS Litigation Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of the office premises for the NHS Litigation Authority in  (a) Holborn and  (b) Harrogate was in each of the last five years.

Ann Keen: The NHS Litigation Authority provided the information requested in the following table.
	
		
			  £ 
			   Holborn Rent  Harrogate Rent 
			 2008-09 653,000 49,800 
			 2007-08 653,000 49,800 
			 2006-07 653,000 49,800 
			 2005-06 653,000 49,800 
			 2004-05 653,000 49,800

NHS Litigation Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff the NHS Litigation Authority employs; and how many of those are  (a) full-time and  (b) part-time.

Ann Keen: The NHS Litigation Authority employs 145 staff, of which 121 are full-time and 24 are part-time.

NHS Litigation Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the annual accounts for the NHS Litigation Authority for 2008-09 will be published.

Ann Keen: The NHS Litigation Authority will publish their annual Report and Accounts for 2008-09 in August 2009.

NHS Litigation Authority

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS Litigation Authority spent on external consultants in each of the last five years.

Ann Keen: The NHS Litigation Authority provided the information requested in the following table.
	
		
			   Consultancy expenditure (£) 
			 2008-09 127,213 
			 2007-08 15,207 
			 2006-07 3,319 
			 2005-06 1,025 
			 2004-05 3,691

NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency spent on external consultancy services in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The figures from April 2004 until March 2009 are shown as follows:
	
		
			   Spent on external consultancy services (£ million) 
			 2004-05 0.5 
			 2005-06 1.8 
			 2006-07 2.9 
			 2007-08 2.3

NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the budget of the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The net operating cost for NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency in each of the last five years is as follows.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2004-05 24,617,000 
			 2005-06 26,779,000 
			 2006-07 26,698,000 
			 2007-08 24,713,000 
			 2008-09 24,492,000

NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of the  (a) Chester,  (b) London office and  (c) Reading office premises of the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The cost for Chester is included within estates north which included Sheffield and South Normanton offices.
	
		
			   2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Estates north 370,573 532,444 289,978 343,877 350,973 
			 London office - - 76,11 43,715 - 
			 Reading office 837,726 755,043 745,134 792,537 941,735

NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the salary of each member of the board of the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency was in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The salaries of the senior management board for the last five years are provided in the following table.
	
		
			2008-09  2007-08  2006-07  2005-06  2004-05  Leaving date 
			 Argyle N 0 0 75,168 73,904 71,405 31 October 2006 
			 Brindle M 0 82,741 80,611 78,756 74,298 31 August 2008 
			 Brohier C 77,703.36 72,791 0 0 0 - 
			 Cooper J 110,475 98,462 88,317 78,756 74,298 - 
			 Eaton D 0 0 110,853 108,989 106,331 30 June 2006 
			 Gerner A 0 0 69,613 67,100 0 1 January 2007 
			 Jackson E 0 0 0 0 111,490 5 April 2005 
			 MacCarthy H 72,295 63,283 61,349 60,000 0 - 
			 Rudd A 83,074 74,041 71,778 70,200 0 - 
			 Sutton R 0 116,548 113,664 On loan 106,167 27 September 2007 
			 Theaker C 73,589 72,146 69,613 67,100 0 - 
			 Uden C 116.611 114,325 110,830 108,393 105,749 - 
			 Warrington J 72,258 70,841 68,990 67,100 0 -

NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency spent on staffing in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The following table provides the staff costs for NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency over the last five years.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2004-05 16,088,000 
			 2005-06 17,873,000 
			 2006-07 15,823,000 
			 2007-08 15,816,000 
			 2008-09 16,293,000

NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) full-time equivalent and  (b) part- time staff are employed by the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency.

Mike O'Brien: The whole time equivalent staff employed by NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency is 264.9 as of 30 June 2009 of which 37 are part time.

NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when Ministers in his Department last met staff of the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency.

Mike O'Brien: Ministers have met with staff of the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency on a number of occasions relating to their responsibilities over the year for example:
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State (Andrew Burnham) was shown around the HealthCare Associated Infection exhibition stand at the NHS Innovation Expo on 18 June.
	Officials attended a meeting with my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ann Keen) and an NHS supplier on 24 June.
	Officials have also met with my noble Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Lord Darzi) on a number of occasions over the last six months regarding Innovation in Procurement.

NHS: Accountancy

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 7 July 2009,  Official Report, column 692W, on NHS accountancy, what assessment he has made of the effects on the revenue of NHS organisations of the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards in relation to  (a) accounting for private finance initiative deals,  (b) accounting for local improvement finance trust schemes and  (c) the accounting treatment of lease arrangements.

Mike O'Brien: In preparation for the introduction of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), from 2009-10, the Department has estimated the recurring additional revenue impact should all NHS local improvement finance trust (LIFT) and private finance initiative (PFI) schemes come onto the public sector balance sheet. For 2009-10 it is estimated that this would amount to £36 million and £148 million respectively. No similar assessment has been performed for lease arrangements but we expect the introduction of IFRS to have a minimal net financial impact.
	We are currently considering the Treasury Consolidated Budgeting Guidance published in June 2009, which deals with aspects of IFRS accounting, to determine how it should be applied to national health service. We are also in discussion with the audit Commission around the likely effect of IFRS on the revenue of NHS organisations.

NHS: Drugs

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his response is to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency consultation MLX357, on the medicines' supply chain, completed in March 2009.

Mike O'Brien: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has reviewed the responses to the public consultation MLX357 and has now published those responses, together with an account of how the Government propose to take account of them. All these documents can be found on the MHRA's website at:
	www.mhra.gov.uk/Publications/Consultations/Medicinesconsultations/MLXs/CON033660

NHS: Drugs

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which primary care trusts have a pharmaceutical needs assessment in place.

Mike O'Brien: The information requested is not held centrally. Primary care trusts were advised in 2004-05 to prepare and to publish pharmaceutical needs assessments in advance of reforms introduced through the NHS (Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2005 from 1 April 2005.

NHS: Finance

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether it is his policy that the balance of the £750 million of capital expenditure for community hospitals over five years announced by his predecessor the right hon. Member for Leicester West is to be spent; what the monetary value of that balance is; and over what period he plans to spend such balance.

Mike O'Brien: The Government continue to ensure that we provide support for the community hospital programme. Investment in community services remains a high priority for us. 28 projects have secured elements of the funding to a value of at least £250 million.
	The money has contributed to a range of services, including community hospitals, and more generally to other important and welcome community projects. I can confirm that the Department of Health and the Treasury will continue to consider schemes for community hospitals. They will be subject to the same approval process as all capital investment, thus ensuring that any further spending is affordable and that it provides value for money. For projects due to start in 2010-11, decisions will be subject to the strategies that PCTs produce for the development of their estates and the outcomes of the next spending review.

NHS: Finance

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the community hospital capital projects which have been approved under the £750 million of capital expenditure for community hospitals over five years announced by his predecessor the right hon. Member for Leicester West since the approval given in June 2008 to St Thomas', Stockport, New Build, stating in each case  (a) the name of the community hospital and its location,  (b) a brief description of the capital works,  (c) the capital cost approved and  (d) the date of approval.

Mike O'Brien: The 2005 Labour Manifesto promised a new generation of state of the art community hospitals. The 'Our health, our care, our say' (January 2006), reiterated the manifesto commitment and pledged to invest £750 million capital in modern community hospitals over five years from 2006-07. Policy details were set out in Our health, our care, our community: investing in community hospitals and services. A copy has already been placed in the Library.
	Since 'Our health, our care, our say', around £250 million of the £750 million has been allocated to 28 schemes.
	The following table outlines:
	the name and location of each community hospital;
	a description of the capital works;
	the amount of the Department's capital allocated to each scheme; and
	the date each scheme was approved.
	
		
			  Strategic Health Authority  Primary Care Trust  Name of scheme  Funding Model  Date scheme approved  Total Department of Health Funding (£ million) 
			 North East Sunderland Teaching PCT Washington Primary Care Centre Public Capital December 2006 8.95 
			 North East Hartlepool PCT Hartlepool Primary Care facility Local Improvement Finance Trust (LIFT) December 2007 3.0 
			 North West Stockport St Thomas Public Capital May 2008 26.6 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Calderdale PCT Kirklees PCT Calderdale and Kirklees Community Services Public Capital April 2007 13.08 
			 Yorkshire and Humber Rotherham PCT Rotherham Primary Care Centre Public Capital April 2007 0.96 
			 Yorkshire and Humber North Yorkshire and York Selby Health and Community Campus Public Capital December 2007 13.0376 
			 Yorkshire and Humber East Riding of Yorkshire East Riding Community Hospitals Public Capital December 2007 17.0 
			 East Midlands Nottingham County Teaching PCT Ashfield Community Hospital Public Capital April 2007 1.149 
			 West Midlands Worcestershire PCT Malvern Community Hospital Public Capital December 2007 19.22 
			 East of England Suffolk PCT Felixstowe General Hospital Public Capital April 2007 1.76 
			 London Haringey PCT Hornsey Community Hospital LIFT April 2007 1.7 
			 London Barking and Dagenham Barking Hospital Public Capital April 2007 5.0 
			 London Richmond and Twickenham Teddington Health and Social Care Centre Public Capital April 2007 3.98 
			 London Kensington and Chelsea St Charles Hospital, London Public Capital December 2007 10.5 
			 London Barnet Finchley Memorial Hospital Public Capital May 2008 9.9 
			 London Greenwich Eltham and Mottingham Public Capital May 2008 4.58 
			 South East Coast Hastings and Rother Hastings Primary Health Care Centre Public Capital April 2007 12.29 
			 South East Coast Eastern and Coastal Kent Health and Social Care at Kings Avenue Public Capital May 2008 9.0 
			 South Central Hampshire Gosport War Memorial Hospital Public Capital December 2006 6.122 
			 South Central Southampton Royal South Hants Hospital Public Capital April 2007 6.079 
			 South Central Portsmouth City Teaching PCT St Mary's Community Hospital Public Capital December 2007 17.1 
			 South Central Buckinghamshire Thame Public Capital May 2008 4.0 
			 South West Gloucestershire Yate Community Health Centre Public Capital December 2006 5.0 
			 South West Somerset Minehead Healthy Living Park Public Capital December 2006 24.5 
			 South West Bristol South Bristol Community Hospital LIFT April 2007 3.9 
			 South West Bath and North Somerset Keynsham Health Park Public Capital December 2007 5.8 
			 South West Gloucestershire PCT Berkeley Vale Public Capital December 2007 6.44 
			 South West Gloucestershire PCT North Cotswolds Public Capital December 2007 13.23

NHS: Foreign Workers

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department takes to validate the qualifications of clinicians from outside the EU who seek to work in the NHS.

Ann Keen: The validation of qualifications of overseas clinicians wishing to work in the NHS is not the responsibility of the Department.
	In the United Kingdom, the health professions regulatory bodies are the competent authorities to assess whether an overseas clinician possesses relevant qualifications to work in the UK-whether within the NHS or the private sector.

NHS: ICT

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which Minister signed off each business case for the NHS IT programme approved since 2002.

Mike O'Brien: The information requested on which Minister signed off each business case for the NHS IT programme approved since 2002 is in the following table:
	
		
			  Number  Case  Date approved  Minister 
			 1 Spine, plus each of the five local service provider (LSP) clusters, delivering care record service (CRS)-six approvals December 2003 Minister of State for Health and Secretary of State. 
			 2 Choose and book original contract September 2003 Minister of State for Health 
			 3 Adding PACS (picture archiving and comms systems) to the clusters [Note: Ministerial approval required only for the North East and Eastern clusters.] August 2005 Minister of State for Delivery 
			 4 GP systems of choice (patient record in general practice, linked to NP) December 2006 Minister of State for Reform 
			 5 Choose and book extension of contract October 2008 Minister for State for Health Services 
			 6 Extension of BT LSP contract to cover elements of the Southern programme for IT March 2009 Minister for State for Health Services 
			 7 Reset ('renegotiation') of the three LSP cluster contracts held by CSC March 2009 Minister for State for Health Services

NHS: ICT

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health from which organisations his Department has sought advice on the NHS national IT programme; and what advice each such organisation has provided.

Mike O'Brien: The Department has always prioritised the building of awareness of the national IT programme, and two-way communication with influential stakeholders including clinicians, senior national health service managers and information management and technology staff, the medical professional representative and health regulatory bodies, voluntary and patient organisations, the commercial sector, and suppliers.
	Before the programme's inception, a consultation document, 'Delivering 21st Century IT support for the NHS : National Specification for Integrated Care Records Service -consultation draft, issued in July 2002, that outlined the requirements for a national patient care records service and the national standards and specification which would underpin it, resulted in almost 200 responses from organisations and individuals. These were taken into account in drawing up the specification for the NHS care records service. Subsequently, in the programme's procurement and delivery process, and particularly in the development and testing phases, representative stakeholders have been routinely consulted to ensure that their requirements and concerns are taken into account.
	More recently, in 2006, the NHS Connecting for Health Evaluation Programme was set up with a view to assessing the usability, actual usage, functions and impact of pilot and delivered systems and services, and more generally to providing high quality, objective, third-party insights into the lessons learned and how systems can be improved. The University of Birmingham was commissioned to manage the programme, including the independent procurement of evaluation services, and day-to-day management of the independent organisations conducting the evaluations.
	Further information about the process by which consultation and other aspects of public engagement is conducted on the development, implementation and evaluation of electronic health information services in the NHS is available at:
	www.connectingforhealth.nhs.uk/engagement/public

NHS: Pay

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was paid in performance-related bonuses to staff in  (a) his Department,  (b) non-departmental public bodies which his Department sponsored and  (c) in the NHS in each of the last five years.

Phil Hope: The amounts paid in non-consolidated performance-related payments in the core Department in the past five years are presented in the following table.
	
		
			  Non-consolidated performance-related payments 
			   £ 
			 2004-05 643,744 
			 2005-06 900,255 
			 2006-07 1,073,151 
			 2007-08 1,461,062 
			 2008-09 1,895,150 
		
	
	The total sum of non-consolidated performance-related payments paid to staff in non-departmental public bodies which the Department of Health sponsors, is as follows.
	
		
			   Total (£) 
			 2004-05 10,319 
			 2005-06 76,531 
			 2006-07 144,718 
			 2007-08 176,296 
		
	
	Non-consolidated performance-related payments for senior staff in national health service special health authorities, strategic health authorities, primary care trusts and ambulance trusts, is subject to the national Very Senior Managers' Pay Framework. Under that framework, the performance-related pay fund is limited to 5 per cent. of the total pay bill. For 2008-09, the total pay bill for relevant staff was £160 million, and the performance-related pay fund was £8 million. Figures for previous years are not available although it is expected that more detailed figures covering this areas of NHS pay will be available in future years, following improvements to the Electronic Staff Record.
	Although NHS staff groups other than Very Senior Managers (VSMs) can be paid performance related bonuses, a specific fund for that purpose is only set aside for VSMs. Any other performance related bonuses paid out are subject to local agreement and/or other contractual arrangements between employers and staff and must be paid from existing local funding. Details of any such performance related bonuses paid to these NHS staff are not collected centrally.

NHS: Working Hours

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether it is in accordance with Government policy that NHS managers who reduce doctors working hours to 48 hours to comply with the European Working Time Directive should receive a bonus.

Ann Keen: This Government's policy is that the payment of bonuses to national health service managers is at the discretion of their employers.

NHS: Working Hours

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he has received that NHS managers are exerting pressure on doctors to state that their working hours are compliant with the 48 hours maximum permitted by the European Working Time Directive when they are not.

Ann Keen: This Government's policy is that the payment of bonuses to national health service managers for reducing doctors working hours to comply with European Working Time Directive is at the discretion of their employers.

Obesity

Kevin Barron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make copies of the publication on medical management during effective weight loss available to NHS staff working with the obese; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: National health service staff can currently refer to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance on the prevention, identification, assessment and management of overweight and obesity in adults and children.
	The Department was not consulted about this publication, but officials will discuss the publication with the national obesity forum, to consider its availability to NHS staff.

Obesity: Surgery

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many bed days were taken up by patients with a diagnosis code of  (a) E660,  (b) E661,  (c) E662,  (d) E668 and  (e) E669 in each (i) region and (ii) primary care trust in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 20 July 2009
	Data are available from the NHS Information Centre on the number of bed days taken up by patients with a primary diagnosis of selected ICD-10 codes. This information has been placed in the Library.
	The NHS Information Centre has not provided data at a primary care trust (PCT) level because in order to protect patient confidentiality, figures between one and five at PCT level would need to be suppressed. Where it is possible to identify numbers from the total due to a single suppressed number in a row or column, an additional number (the next smallest) would also need to be suppressed. As a result, the majority of the numbers at PCT level would need low number suppression, and would make the data meaningless. Therefore the data have been provided at strategic health authority level only.

Obesity: Surgery

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital admissions there have been for diagnosis codes of  (a) E660,  (b) E661,  (c) E662,  (d) E668 and  (e) E669 for (i) males and (ii) females aged (A) under 18, (B) between 18 and 30 and (iii) over 30 years old in each (x) region and (y) primary care trust in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 Data are available from the NHS Information Centre on the number of finished admission episodes with a primary diagnosis of selected ICD-10 code. This information has been placed in the Library.
	The NHS Information Centre has not provided data at a primary care trust (PCT) level because in order to protect patient confidentiality, figures between one and five at PCT level would need to be suppressed. Where it is possible to identify numbers from the total due to a single suppressed number in a row or column, an additional number (the next smallest) would also need to be suppressed. As a result, the majority of the numbers at PCT level would need low number suppression, and would make the data meaningless. Therefore the data have been provided at strategic health authority level only.

Palliative Care: Tamworth

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what data are used by NHS healthcare commissioners to determine the demand for specialist palliative and neurological care in Tamworth constituency.

Gillian Merron: It is for individual primary care trusts (PCTs), including South Staffordshire PCT, within the national health service to commission services for their resident population, including end of life care and neurological care, based on an assessment of local needs and priorities. Strategic health authorities (SHA) are responsible for monitoring PCTs to ensure they are effective and efficient. The information sources used by PCTs to make these decisions are a matter for local commissioners to determine. My hon. Friend may wish to approach the chief executive of South Staffordshire PCT for these details.
	To support implementation of the End of Life Care Strategy for adults, published in July 2008, the NHS Operating Framework 2007-08 asked PCTs, working with local authorities, to undertake a baseline review of their end of life care services. These reviews have been helpful to PCTs as they have prepared their local strategic plans to deliver on the SHA visions for end of life care developed as part of the NHS Next Stage Review.
	Regarding neurological care, the information strategy published alongside the National Service Framework for Long-term (Neurological) Conditions outlines commissioners' information requirements and a series of local and national actions designed to meet those needs.

Pharmacy: Pay

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with pharmacists on his Department's proposals to replace the prescription item threshold system with a scale of remuneration for pharmacists.

Mike O'Brien: There have been no discussions on the specific question as yet.

Prescription Drugs

Chris McCafferty: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to specify medicines to be excluded from the provisions of his Department's proposed generic substitution arrangements.

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will exempt anti-epileptic drugs from the requirements of his Department's guidelines on generic substitution to be introduced in January 2010.

Mike O'Brien: I refer the hon. Members to the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Slough (Fiona Mactaggart) on 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 524W.

Rehabilitation

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money his Department has spent on the treatment of  (a) drug,  (b) alcohol,  (c) smoking and  (d) gambling addictions in each of the last five years.

Gillian Merron: The following table sets out the Department's expenditure on drug treatment for the last five years.
	
		
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			 Adult PTB 300.0 385.0 398.0 398.0 406.0 
			 Mainstream Funding (PCT) 208 212 202 208 (1)- 
			 Young people's PTB 24 24.6 24.7 24.7 24.7 
			 Prison Clinical Services (IDTS) 0.0 7.8 11.5 23.2 39.7 
			 (1) Not finalised  Note: Abbreviations: PTB - Pooled drug treatment budget, PCT - Primary Care Trust, IDTS - Integrated Drug Treatment System. 
		
	
	The information requested on smoking addiction treatment is not available in the exact format requested.
	The costs associated with the NHS Stop Smoking Services in each of the last five years can be found in Table 4.6 on page 43 of 'NHS Stop Smoking Services in England, April to March 2008.
	This publication has been placed in the Library.
	Primary care trusts are responsible for providing local health services, including gambling and alcohol addiction treatments, and together with their strategic health authorities are responsible for deciding which services to plan, commission and develop to meet the health needs of their local communities. Information on this spend is not collected centrally.

Respiratory System

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 20 April 2009,  Official Report, column 479W, on the respiratory system, if he will break down the figures provided by age group.

Ann Keen: A table containing a break down by age group for patients with diseases of the respiratory system has been placed in Library.

Sexual Dysfunction

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many prescriptions of each type of drug for the treatment of erectile dysfunction were dispensed in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: The following table provides the number of prescription items dispensed for drugs to treat erectile dysfunction, as listed in section 7.4.5 of the British National Formulary (BNF), written in the United Kingdom and dispensed in the community, in England.
	
		
			  Drugs used to treat erectile dysfunction (BNF section 7.4.5) 
			   Number of prescription items (thousand) 
			  BNF chemical name  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Alprostadil 77.1 74.6 75.8 76.3 75.6 
			 Apomorphine Hydrochloride 21.6 16.6 7.1 0.0 0.0 
			 Other Preparations(1) 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 Papaverine Hydrochloride 0.9 0.7 0.5 0.3 0.0 
			 Papaverine Hydrochloride/Phentolamine 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Papaverine Sulphate 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 - 
			 Sildenafil (Erectile Dysfunction)(2) 1,024.3 1,015.0 1,042.4 1,112.2 1,185.4 
			 Tadalafil 266.3 370.4 438.1 503.0 569.5 
			 Vardenafil 74.0 112.6 136.1 146.5 153.3 
			 Yohimbine Hydrochloride 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0.1 
			 Grand total 1,464.8 1,590.4 1,700.4 1,838.7 1,984.1 
			 '-' Indicates no prescription items. '0.0' indicates less than 50 items (1) Includes Invicorp-1 injection solution auto-injector, Invicorp-2 injection solution auto-injector and Invicorp-2 injection solution 1 ml amp. (2) Does not include Revatio as this should only be prescribed to treat pulmonary hypertension (BNF 2.5.1).  Source: Prescription Cost Analysis (PCA) 
		
	
	We do not know the intended purpose for which prescription items are prescribed. Some drugs within BNF section 7.4.5 can be used to treat other conditions. There are drugs in other BNF sections which may be prescribed to treat erectile dysfunction.

Smoking: Young People

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated on the effects of tobacco displays in shops on rates of smoking amongst young people.

Gillian Merron: The Department of Health has not directly commissioned or evaluated any specific research on the effect of tobacco displays on young people.
	The Department has assessed the role of tobacco displays on smoking in young people based on a variety of research and evidence. These are detailed in the impact assessment that accompanies the Health Bill, in the consultation on the future of tobacco control, a copy of which has already been placed in the Library, in the presentations made to MPs during the passage of the Bill and in the factsheets sent to peers and MPs.

Swine Flu

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of his Department's expenditure on the National Pandemic Flu line in 2009-10; and how many staff he expects will be employed to answer calls to the line.

Gillian Merron: The Department has been planning for a flu pandemic for some time and this solution has already been subject to a substantial economic and business case analysis. Any such commitments the Department enters into are still subject to the usual tests for value for money and affordability. While cost estimates have been prepared based on a range of possible pandemic durations and attack rates, these cannot be released as the contract details are commercial in confidence. The number of staff employed to answer calls is subject to finalisation based on the attack rate. Current plans are based around needing an average of 2,000 agent seats per week.

Swine Flu

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his oral statement of 2 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 503-04, on swine flu update, against what criteria primary care trust readiness has been assessed; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the results of the assessment made in respect of each primary care trust.

Gillian Merron: The emergence of swine influenza in April interrupted the strategic health authority (SHA) and primary care trust (PCT) self-assessment process.
	National health service (NHS) and the Department's resources that would, in normal circumstances, have been allocated to collecting and validating these assessments, are currently being directed towards managing the current outbreak and ensuring that the Department and NHS are fully prepared for any potentially more severe outbreak over the autumn or winter.
	There is a full programme of work led by the National Director for NHS Flu Resilience, to ensure NHS Pandemic Influenza Plans fully reflect the current understanding of the swine flu virus. This includes a programme of testing the plans to be coordinated by the 10 SHAs across England, the results of which will in effect succeed the audit.
	This work is already under way and should be completed by early autumn. We will publish summary reports on each of the ten exercises. Once finalised, copies of these reports will be placed in the Library.

Swine Flu

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of local authority resilience and civil contingency planning in relation to the swine influenza outbreak.

Gillian Merron: The Government make no detailed assessment of preparedness of local authorities-it is for them to decide how to meet their legal obligations to plan for an influenza pandemic under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004. Local authority compliance with the Civil Contingencies Act duties is assessed by the Audit Commission as part of their comprehensive area assessment process.
	As members of Local Resilience Forums (LRFs), local authorities have played a full part in the development of local multi agency pandemic influenza plans. Over the last year, these plans have undergone validation by local responders and Government offices and at least one LRF plan per region has been tested via a table top exercise. Lessons identified will be shared locally.
	Plans are available on local LRF websites and can be accessed through the UK Resilience pages of the Cabinet Office website:
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/ukresilience/pandemicflu/plans/regional_plans.aspx

Swine Flu

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will direct each mental health and learning disability trust to publish its contingency plans to deal with swine influenza.

Gillian Merron: National health service organisations that provide mental health and learning disability services have Flu Pandemic Plans that are already in action as part of the local response being led by primary care trusts. It would not be the best use of NHS resources at this time to direct NHS organisations to publish these plans. In addition, these plans are being continuously reviewed and, where necessary, updated informed by the latest expert scientific and medical advice of the current swine flu pandemic. Publication of contingency plans by mental health and learning disability trusts will, therefore, not be requested.

Swine Flu

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has issued to the public on those groups which are most vulnerable to contracting swine influenza.

Gillian Merron: We publish a range of guidance on the NHS Choices website that is updated daily at:
	www.nhs.uk/news/2009/04April/Pages?Swineflulatest.aspx

Swine Flu

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment has been made of which groups of workers in the public sector are most vulnerable to contracting swine influenza.

Gillian Merron: Influenza viruses are transmitted by respiratory droplets and direct or indirect contact with the virus, for example by touching a surface contaminated with the virus as a result of a sneeze.
	In the early stages of the pandemic, when there were few people infected with the virus, public sector workers delivering frontline health and social care to those patients were potentially at greater risk of becoming infected than the general population. However, this risk could be reduced by effective use of infection control procedures.
	With widespread transmission of the virus in the community, it is unlikely that any one population group is more likely than another to be infected by swine influenza.
	For those public sector staff working in front-line health and social care with known or suspected influenza patients, personal protective equipment including facemasks and gloves have been provided. There is also guidance for organisations on infection control procedures for staff to implement in their clinical practice.

Swine Flu

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his most recent assessment is of the ability of primary care trusts to cope with swine influenza outbreaks in their areas.

Gillian Merron: The emergence of swine influenza in April interrupted the strategic health authority (SHA) and primary care trust (PCT) self-assessment process.
	The national health service and the Department's resources that would, in normal circumstances, have been allocated to collecting and validating these assessments, are currently being directed towards managing the current outbreak and ensuring that the Department and NHS are fully prepared for any potentially more severe outbreak over the autumn or winter.
	There is a full programme of work led by the National Director for NHS Flu Resilience, to ensure NHS pandemic influenza plans fully reflect the current understanding of the swine flu virus. This includes a programme of testing the plans to be coordinated by the 10 SHAs across England, the results of which will in effect succeed the audit.
	This work is already under way and should be completed by early autumn. We will publish summary reports on each of the 10 exercises. Once finalised, copies of these reports will be placed in the Library.
	The Department has been working closely with PCTs across the country to ensure their plans are robust, and so far the response from PCTs, particularly in areas of sustained transmission, has been very good in challenging circumstances.

Swine Flu: Drugs

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many courses of antivirals have been dispensed for the treatment of swine influenza since 2 July 2009; and how many of these have been given to  (a) patients with swine influenza and  (b) contacts of patients with swine influenza.

Gillian Merron: Information on courses of antivirals given to patients is currently being collected. I will write to the hon. Member when the information is available and will place a copy in the Library.

Swine Flu: Lancashire

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance has been given to primary and secondary schools in Lancashire on swine influenza.

Diana Johnson: I have been asked to reply.
	The Department had issued guidance in 2006 to all local authorities on contingency measures for pandemic flu, which we supplemented with guidance on infection control (2007) and remote learning in the event of a school closing for an extended period (2008). The Department sent out reminders to all local authorities in the week commencing 27 April that the guidance is available. We have since updated our questions and answers and Swine Flu messages and have sent these to schools and local authorities on 5 May, 27 May, 11 June and 14 July. Our Teachernet website has also been regularly updated with lines to take and advice for schools, local authorities and parents.

Swine Flu: Morecambe

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of swine influenza had been diagnosed in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency by the latest date for which figures are available.

Gillian Merron: As of 10 July, a total of seven laboratory confirmed cases of swine flu (HIN1v) had been identified in the North Lancashire primary care trust area, which includes Morecambe and Lunesdale.

Swine Flu: North West

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of swine influenza have been confirmed in each North West primary care trust area.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 As of 10 July, there have been a total of 195 laboratory confirmed cases of swine flu in the north-west. The breakdown, by primary care trust (PCT), is as follows:
	
		
			  Health protection unit  PCT name  Confirmed 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Central and Eastern Cheshire 13 
			  Halton and St Helens 11 
			  Knowsley 7 
			  Liverpool 13 
			  Sefton 10 
			  Warrington 5 
			  Western Cheshire 5 
			  Wirral 8 
			  Unknown 0 
			
			 Cumbria and Lancashire Blackburn with Darwen 9 
			  Blackpool 0 
			  Central Lancashire 8 
			  Cumbria 4 
			  East Lancashire 13 
			  North Lancashire 7 
			  Unknown 2 
			
			 Greater Manchester Ashton Leigh and Wigan 2 
			  Bolton 3 
			  Bury 4 
			  Heywood Middleton and Rochdale 6 
			  Manchester 20 
			  Oldham 8 
			  Salford 12 
			  Stockport 11 
			  Tameside and Glossop 3 
			  Trafford 7 
			  Unknown 4 
			 Total for north-west  195

Swine Flu: Vaccination

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects a programme of vaccinations against swine influenza to begin.

Gillian Merron: The manufacturers have advised that they will be delivering the first supplies of the vaccine at the end of August. The vaccine will need to satisfy regulatory requirements before it can be used. The regulatory issues, the timetable and the licensing process, are matters for the European Medicines Agency.

Tobacco

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to publish his Department's consultation document on the future of tobacco control.

Gillian Merron: The Consultation on the future of tobacco control was published on 31 May 2008 and closed on 8 September 2008. The consultation report was published on 8 December 2008 and is available on the departmental website, and can be found at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/DH_085114
	A copy has already been placed in the Library.

Vulnerable Adults: Protection

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the  (a) membership and  (b) remit is of the (i) Programme Board and (ii) Advisory Board for the No Secrets review; on what dates each board has met; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what the  (a) start and  (b) end date was for his Department's No Secrets consultation; whether his Department's response has been drafted and published in accordance with the timescale set out in the code of practice on consultation; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what steps his Department has taken to comply with the Government's Code of Practice on Consultation in relation to the No Secrets Review; what the  (a) membership,  (b) remit and  (c) dates of meetings are of the Programme and Advisory Boards for the No Secrets Review; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: The membership of the Programme Board and Advisory Group is published in the consultation document, Safeguarding Adults: A consultation on the review of the 'No Secrets' guidance-Department of Health, October 2008. A copy has already been placed in the Library.
	The remit of the Programme Board was to review the effectiveness of present multi-agency safeguarding and adult protection guidance in producing positive outcomes for individuals at risk of abuse in the light of emerging information from recent cases, recent inspections and in the context of the Government's overall policy agenda in both health and social care, and to carry out a national consultation on these issues. The Advisory Group's remit was to advise on issues relevant to the consultation. The Programme Board met on 21 May 2008, 25 June 2008 and 9 October 2008. The Advisory Group met on 7 May 2008, 26 September 2008 and 12 November 2008.
	The consultation opened on 16 October 2008 and closed on 31 January 2009. The analysis of the consultation responses was published on 17 July 2009. The time taken to publish the analysis reflected the fact that some 12,000 people, including those with learning difficulties, older people, those with mental health problems and people from a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds, participated in the consultation.
	The Department is a signatory to the Government's Code of Practice on Consultation and follows the code closely.

Vulnerable Adults: Protection

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many people were on the barred list maintained under the Protection of Vulnerable Adults scheme in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many people have been added to the barred list maintained under the Protection of Vulnerable Adults scheme by the Independent Safeguarding Authority since January 2009.

Phil Hope: The number of people confirmed as being unsuitable to work with vulnerable adults that have been placed on the Protection of Vulnerable Adults (POVA) list over the past five years, is shown in the table.
	
		
			   Number of people confirmed on list 
			 2004 41 
			 2005 237 
			 2006 407 
			 2007 976 
			 2008 377 
			 Total 2,038 
			  Source: Department for Children, Schools and Families Customer Relationship Manager database 
		
	
	The Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) does not have the power to add names to the POVA list. Decisions whether to confirm individuals on the POVA list are made by the Secretary of State for Health, following receipt of advice from the ISA.
	Since January 2009, the number of people confirmed on the Adult Barred List maintained by the ISA, is 576.

Wakefield NHS Trust: Manpower

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many full-time equivalent  (a) medical consultants,  (b) other medical staff,  (c) nurses, (d) other professional staff,  (e) administrative and clerical staff and  (f) auxiliary staff were employed by Wakefield NHS Trust in each year since 1996-97.

Ann Keen: The information is not available in the format requested. The information as is available is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  NHS staff in specified organisations by main staff groups. Shown as full-time equivalents and as at 30 September each year-2002-08 
			   2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			  Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust total 5,748 5,733 5,746 6,079 5,897 5,861 6,060 
			 
			 HCHS Medical and Dental Staff 544 543 597 641 654 686 686 
			 
			 All HCHS Medical and Dental Consultants 194 197 209 220 225 246 242 
			  O f which:
			 Medical Consultant 190 192 205 215 220 241 237 
			 
			 All HCHS Other Medical and Dental staff 350 347 388 421 429 440 444 
			  O f which:
			 Medical Other 343 343 380 414 421 430 435 
			 
			 All non-medical staff 5,204 5,190 5,149 5,438 5,244 5,176 5,375 
			 
			 Professionally qualified clinical staff 2,433 2,436 2,435 2,536 2,532 2,512 2,504 
			 Qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff 1,785 1,769 1,750 1,828 1,797 1,756 1,719 
			 Qualified scientific, therapeutic and technical (STT) staff 648 667 684 709 736 755 785 
			 Qualified Allied Health Professions 318 336 337 357 373 391 423 
			 Qualified Healthcare Scientists 0 118 175 182 188 187 187 
			 Other Qualified Scientific, therapeutic and technical staff 330 213 172 170 175 177 176 
			 
			 Support to clinical staff 1,875 1,878 1,835 2,016 1,827 1,827 2,014 
			 Support to doctors and nursing staff 1,530 1,535 1,482 1,651 1,455 1,479 1,625 
			 Support to STT staff 345 343 353 365 372 348 389 
			 
			 NHS infrastructure support 891 868 871 877 876 829 849 
			 Central functions 327 297 325 326 282 265 269 
			 Hotel, property and estates 487 485 455 448 489 462 482 
			 Managers and senior managers 76 86 92 103 105 102 99 
			 
			 Other staff or those with unknown classification 5 7 8 9 8 8 8 
			 
			  Wakefield District PCT total 1,012 1,149 1,294 1,352 1,483 1,500 1,628 
			 
			 HCHS Medical and Dental Staff 19 19 23 22 22 29 26 
			 
			 All HCHS Medical and Dental Consultants 7 5 8 8 7 11 11 
			  O f which:
			 Medical Consultant 7 5 8 8 7 11 11 
			 
			 All HCHS Other Medical and Dental staff 12 13 14 14 15 18 15 
			  O f which:
			 Medical Other 8 8 9 8 8 12 9 
			 
			 All non-medical staff 687 787 943 995 1,100 1,116 1,274 
			 
			 Professionally qualified clinical staff 373 381 432 449 502 542 617 
			 Qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff 312 318 356 364 395 428 486 
			 Qualified scientific, therapeutic and technical staff 60 63 76 84 107 114 131 
			 Qualified Allied Health Professions 53 54 61 68 79 83 86 
			 Other Qualified Scientific, therapeutic and technical staff 7 9 15 17 27 32 44 
			 
			 Support to clinical staff 155 228 327 347 386 412 457 
			 Support to doctors and nursing staff 125 192 288 300 326 354 395 
			 Support to STT staff 30 35 39 47 60 58 62 
			 
			 NHS infrastructure support 159 177 184 199 212 161 201 
			 Central functions 67 139 146 151 161 120 156 
			 Hotel, property and estates 2 3 4 5 5 7 9 
			 Managers and senior managers 90 36 34 44 46 34 36 
			 
			 All General Practitioners 209 211 212 218 231 225 233 
			 Practice Nurses 97 133 116 116 130 130 94 
			  Notes: 1. The structure of NHS trusts in the Wakefield area has changed over the period the data are requested for. In April 2002, the Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust was formed from the partial-merger of the Pinderfields and Pontefract Hospitals NHS Trust and the Dewsbury Health Care NHS Trust. 2. In 2006, Wakefield District Primary Care Trust (PCT) was formed from a complete merger of Eastern Wakefield PCT and Wakefield West PCT. Most General Practitioners are not employed directly by the PCT, but perform NHS work within the PCT areas. 3. Work force statistics are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and PCTs in England. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data. Processing methods and procedures are continually being updated to improve data quality. Where this happens, any impact on figures already published will be assessed but unless this is significant at national level they will not be changed. Where there is impact only at detailed or local level this will be footnoted in relevant analyses.  Source: The NHS Information Centre for Health and Social Care

Wakefield NHS Trust: Waiting Lists

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time was for  (a) elective in- patient admission and  (b) first out-patient appointment in each speciality at Wakefield NHS Trust in each year since 1996.

Mike O'Brien: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is contained in a table that has been placed in the Library.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Biofuels

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  what assessment his Department has made of the effect of Ofgem's ruling of March 2009 on biodiesel, glycerol and the Renewables Obligation on the production of bio-fuels from used cooking oil; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what incentives his Department provides for the production of biofuels from used cooking oil; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what his Department's policy is on the use of recycled waste materials in the biofuel production process.

David Kidney: Recycled waste biomass is an important source of renewable energy for transport fuel, and heat and electricity generation. The Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) requires suppliers of fossil fuel to ensure that a proportion of the fuel they supply is renewable. Under the RTFO, biofuels made from waste materials such as used cooking oil are eligible fuels and certificates can be issued for their supply. The Renewable Fuels Agency, the administrator of the RTFO, has published data in their fourth quarterly report indicating that 37 million litres, or 3 per cent. of the biofuel used in the first year of the obligation, was made from used cooking oil. The Renewable Energy Directive requires that biofuels made from waste, including used cooking oil, receive double rewards under biofuel support schemes and it is intended that the RTFO will be amended accordingly following consultation. The Government also intend to provide financial support for the creation by industry of a biofuels demonstration plant in England, which would use organic waste material to produce bioethanol and renewable power.
	Fuels produced from used cooking oil continue to be eligible for the Renewables Obligation if they meet the requirements of section 32M of the Electricity Act 1989. In practice, the ruling by Ofgem is not expected to alter the production of biofuels from used cooking oil to a great extent. We are currently considering whether the implementation of the Renewable Energy Directive into national law has implications for the treatment of biodiesel under the Renewables Obligation.

British Gas

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  with reference to paragraph 6 of the notes to editors of his Department's press release of 2 April 2008, whether each British Gas scheme involves  (a) discounts on council tax bills and  (b) cash back cheques;
	(2)  with reference to paragraph 6 of the notes to editors of his Department's press release of 2 April 2008, what funding his Department has provided to assist the 75 local schemes; and whether participating local authorities are required to subsidise the schemes;
	(3)  with reference to paragraph 6 of the notes to editors in his Department's press release of 2 April 2008, what estimate has been made of  (a) the cost to the public purse of the energy saving measures offered by British Gas including the council tax discount and  (b) the prices charged by companies other than British Gas for the same measures.

David Kidney: The scheme referred to is a private scheme run by British Gas to help it meet its household carbon saving obligation set by Government under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT). CERT is an obligation on all suppliers with more than 50,000 domestic customers. Suppliers meet their targets by promoting and encouraging consumers to take up energy efficiency measures such as loft insulation and cavity wall insulation and thereby save energy and money. Suppliers are responsible for meeting the costs of CERT, which are expected to be some £3.2 billion over the course of the three-year scheme to March 2011. Suppliers use a number of innovative schemes and partnerships to meet their targets, including linking up with local authorities, registered social landlords and charities.

Buildings: Carbon Emissions

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent estimate he has made of the levels of carbon dioxide emissions resulting from  (a) heating for buildings and  (b) air conditioning in buildings per head of population (i) in each region and (ii) in England.

Joan Ruddock: Emissions resulting from heating and cooling buildings can be assessed at a UK-wide level, but they are not currently disaggregated into constituent counties or regions.
	In June 2007, the Department of Trade and Industry estimated CO2 emissions from all heat use in the domestic and services sectors of the UK to be 27 per cent. of total UK CO2 emissions, equivalent to 150 Mt CO2, or around 2.5 tonnes CO2 per capita.
	Building Research Establishment (BRE) estimates the current annual CO2 emissions from cooling non-domestic buildings in the UK to be approximately 3 Mt CO2, equivalent to around one twentieth of a tonne of CO2 per capita annually. Residential sector cooling is not thought to make a significant contribution to UK CO2 emissions at present.

Carbon Emissions

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what  (a) short-term and  (b) long-term plans the Government have to contribute towards meeting the goal of reducing global greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 per cent. by 2050; and what steps the Government plan to take in co-operation with other developed nations to reduce levels of such emissions.

Joan Ruddock: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Government's framework for managing and responding to climate change is set by the 2008 Climate Change Act. The Act sets a target for the UK to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to at least 80 per cent. below 1990 levels by 2050, and the Government are required to set and meet five-year carbon budgets to define the pathway to this target.
	The 2050 target was adopted in October 2008, following advice from the Committee on Climate Change. The Committee advised that this was an appropriate UK contribution to a global deal aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to between 20 billion tonnes and 24 billion tonnes by 2050 (between 50 and 60 per cent. below current levels).
	The Act was also amended earlier this year to require us to set the third carbon budget, covering the period 2018-22, at a level that is equivalent to a reduction in emissions of at least 34 per cent. below 1990 levels, as an important interim target towards 2050. The first three carbon budgets were approved by Parliament in May. On 15 July, we published the 'UK Low Carbon Transition Plan', which sets out how we will meet those carbon budgets through investment in energy efficiency and clean energy technologies such as renewables, nuclear, and carbon capture and storage. It also committed us to producing a longer term roadmap for the transition to a low carbon UK for the period 2020 to 2050 by next spring.
	Internationally, the UK is working with other developed countries to agree at the United Nations framework convention on climate change meeting in Copenhagen in December 2009 a comprehensive, global and long-term framework for addressing climate change that puts us on the right pathway for reducing global greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 per cent. by 2050. The Government's proposals are set out in 'The Road to Copenhagen' (Cm 7659), copies of which are in the Library of the House.
	Following a new and ambitious international agreement, the Government will tighten the level of the UK carbon budgets, taking into account the outcome of the EU's effort sharing negotiations and further advice from the Committee on Climate Change.

Carbon Trust: Energy Saving Trust

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Tunbridge Wells (Greg Clark) of 25 March 2009,  Official Report, column 497W, on the Carbon Trust and Energy Saving Trust, 
	(1)  how much had been spent by the Carbon Trust on payments to  (a) Weber Shandwick,  (b) TLG Communications Ltd and  (c) Grayling Political Strategy on the latest date for which figures are available;
	(2)  how much had been spent by the Energy Saving Trust on payments to  (a) Postif Politics,  (b) Stratagem,  (c) Weber Shandwick Public Affairs and (d) Geromino Commuications on the latest date for which figures are available.

Joan Ruddock: The Carbon Trust and Energy Saving Trust are both private companies limited by guarantee, therefore details of payments made are a matter for the Trusts' Boards.

Coal Investment Aid

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department plans to introduce a new scheme to replace the Coal Investment Aid Scheme.

David Kidney: No.
	Council Regulation (EC) No. 1407/2002 on State Aid to the hard coal industry under which Coal Investment Aid was offered does not provide for the introduction of a replacement scheme.
	The European Commission is currently consulting on how to replace the Regulation when it expires on 31 December 2010. The consultation closed on 15 July 2009.

Departmental Billing

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what percentage of invoices from suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in June 2009.

Joan Ruddock: 100 per cent.

Departmental Campaigns

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what public campaigns have been undertaken by his Department since its establishment; and what the  (a) resource,  (b) capital expenditure and  (c) staffing costs of each were of each such campaign.

Joan Ruddock: Since September 2008 to June 2009, DECC has spent approximately £4.8 million exclusive of VAT on the Act On CO2 marketing campaign.
	DECC has not incurred any capital expenditure costs or additional staffing costs on the campaign.

Departmental Contracts

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many contracts let by his Department were awarded to businesses with fewer than 50 employees in each of the last five years; and what the monetary value of such contracts was in each such year.

Joan Ruddock: It is not possible to answer this question without incurring disproportionate costs.

Departmental Ministerial Policy Advisers

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  what discussions he has had with his special adviser on feed-in tariffs as part of his Department's new Climate Change Strategy;
	(2)  how many meetings in his Department his special adviser on feed-in tariffs has attended since appointment.

David Kidney: DECC Ministers have frequent meetings with parliamentary colleagues. My hon. Friend the Member for Nottingham, South (Alan Simpson) has not held meetings with officials. My hon. Friend is not employed as a special adviser but has had discussions with my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for North Warwickshire (Mr. O'Brien) on the subject of feed-in tariffs since the passage of the Energy Act.

Departmental Procurement

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress his Department has made in implementing the recommendations of the Glover Report in its procurement processes.

Joan Ruddock: Our procurement service provider (Department of Business, Information and Skills-BIS) is considering how best to utilise the www.supply2.gov.uk portal for advertising tenders until the opportunities portal is available at the end of 2010 (Glover Report Recommendation 1) and how to identify small and medium-sized enterprise expenditure data (Recommendation 12) in an efficient manner.
	The Department is currently preparing an Innovation Procurement Plan (Recommendation 8).
	Along with BIS, the Department is waiting for the Office of Government Commerce guidance on the implementation of the remaining recommendations.

Departmental Public Relations

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Tunbridge Wells (Greg Clark) of 20 April 2009,  Official Report, column 305W, on departmental public relations, what the monetary value is of the contract with Kreab Gavin Anderson to provide public relations advice to his Department.

Joan Ruddock: The Kreab Gavin Anderson contract is for up to £320,000 for the period 9 May 2008 to 31 March 2010 inclusive. Kreab Gavin Anderson are contracted to provide expert advice and support on the renewable energy finance community including on the impact of proposed measures on renewable finance and investment prospects. As part of this contract they also support the Department's work by arranging seminars, meetings with investors, and wider awareness raising with investors and media on developments in renewable energy policy.

Departmental Secondment

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many employees of his Department have been posted to work in offices of hon. Members of each political party since its inception.

Joan Ruddock: Civil servants are required to act in accordance with the requirements of the Civil Service Code.
	Civil servants may shadow MPs as part of a programme run by the Industry and Parliament Trust. Information on numbers of civil servants from this Department that have had such an attachment is not held centrally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Work Experience

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many interns work in his Department; what terms of reference apply to their appointment; what remuneration they receive; and how long on average an intern appointment lasts.

Joan Ruddock: DECC currently has one intern. DECC's terms of reference for interns are still being developed, and are based on giving an individual a personal development opportunity and introducing them to the civil service, while completing a meaningful piece of work.
	Remuneration for this contract is based on £29,191 (pro rata) which is in line with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs HEO starting salary.
	This contract is for three months.

E.ON: Corporate Hospitality

David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many of his Department's employees accepted corporate hospitality from E.ON in  (a) 2007 and  (b) 2008; how many have done so in 2009 to date; and what hospitality was received in each case.

David Kidney: Since 2007 DECC's employees have received corporate hospitality from EON on the following occasions:
	
		
			   Nature of hospitality 
			  2007  
			 5 July Lunch 
			 December Lunch 
			   
			  2008  
			 24 January Dinner and private viewing at the Royal Academy 
			 29 January Light buffet supper (received from Eon Ruhrgas) 
			 20 February International Petroleum week Dinner (received from Eon Ruhrgas) 
			 9 June Royal Academy of Engineering Awards Dinner (received from Eon Engineering) 
			 19 November Dinner 
			   
			  2009  
			 11 May Guest at Eon sponsored reception 
			 4 June DECC staff visit to Eon Rushcliffe on Soar power station and Research and Development Centre (7 DECC participants). Sandwich lunch, small gift bag and transport to and from the station. 
		
	
	Hospitality received by my officials follows Civil Service Guidance that any hospitality should be conventional, normal and reasonable.

Energy Supply

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what monitoring his Department is undertaking of the effects on  (a) payment method preference,  (b) levels of debt and  (c) levels of disconnections of domestic energy consumers of (i) recent and (ii) anticipated increases in energy prices; and how much funding his Department has allocated to provide domestic energy customers with energy efficiency advice and information.

David Kidney: DECC analyses data from a number of sources on conditions in the household energy supply markets. DECC monitors and publishes data on average bills by payment method, and on numbers of customers on different payment methods. Ofgem monitors and publishes data on levels of debt and on disconnections.
	The Government provide the Energy Saving Trust with annual grant funding (circa £37 million in 2009-10) to manage the Act on CO2 helpline and advice centres. This provides consumers a central free source of impartial advice on energy efficiency, microgeneration and renewable energy, low carbon transport, water efficiency and waste reduction, as well as easy access to a range of energy efficiency offers.

Energy: Meters

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what evidence his Department has received from the Energy Retail Association on the costs of those smart metering; and what further steps his Department has taken to establish implementing costs.

David Kidney: The Department published Impact Assessments on 11 May, which set out the costs and benefits of different options for rolling out smart meters to both domestic and small and medium-sized enterprise public sector energy consumers. In preparing these assessments my Department took into account information on costs and benefits from a wide range of sources, including information provided by energy supply companies who are members of the Energy Retailers Association.

Energy: Meters

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which energy providers supply smart meters to their residential customers free of charge.

David Kidney: The provision of intelligent metering to domestic customers and the terms on which such metering may be offered is currently a matter for energy supply companies. The Department does not collect information about this matter.

Energy: Prices

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  how many households were on a social tariff from their energy supplier in each of the last five years;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of households in receipt of a social tariff from their energy supplier who paid less than they would on the cheapest non-social tariff offered by that supplier in each of the last five years.

David Kidney: Ofgem monitors the energy suppliers' social programmes on behalf of Government. They have published data on the number of customer accounts on a social tariff from their energy supplier for each of the last two years to 31 March 2008. Their latest report also estimated that, as at the end of October 2008, over 800,000 customer accounts were on a social tariff. In addition this report compared the range of savings between a supplier's social tariff and their cheapest non-social tariff offered during 2007-08. Numbers of customers on social tariffs and the range of savings from them are set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Supplier/tariff name  Energy type  Total customer accounts on a social tariff as at 31 August 2007  Total customer accounts on a social tariff as at 31 March 2008( 1)  Range of savings over supplier's best offer, 2007-08( 2) 
			 British Gas/Essentials Electricity 83,000 113,584 -59(3) 
			  Gas 197,000 200,845 -9 
			  Total 280,000 314,429 - 
			  
			 EDF Energy/Energy Assist Electricity 45,154 46,130 46 to 55 
			  Gas 14,825 15,742 67 to 91 
			  Total 59,979 61,872 - 
			  
			 E.ON (Powergen)/Social StayWarm Electricity - 26,833 Because of the structure of this tariff it is not possible to compare it for this analysis. 
			  Gas - 25,495  
			  Total 10,373 52,328  
			  
			 Npower/First Step Electricity 1,415 2,108 7 to 28 
			  Gas 1,042 1,398 17 to 38 
			  Total 2,457 3,506 - 
			  
			 Scottish Power Social tariff launched on 1 April 2008 
			  
			 SSE/EnergyPlus Care Electricity 7,538 15,282 36 to 50 
			  Gas 4,983 11,077 32 to 56 
			  Total 12,521 26,359 - 
			  
			 Total Electricity 137,107 203,937 n/a 
			  Gas 217,850 254,557 - 
			  Total 365,330 458,494 - 
			 (1) To 31 March 2008, Ofgem defined a social tariff as needing to be at least equal to the supplier's standard direct debit tariff. Going forward, to qualify as a social tariff it has to be at least as good as the lowest tariff that supplier offers in the customer's area. (2) As these savings were calculated over the year 2007-08 and the numbers on a social tariff were given as at 31 March 2008, the exact numbers benefiting from a social tariff, below a supplier's best offer, cannot be estimated. (3) Negative figures illustrate the average cost disadvantage of the social tariff over the best offer from the same supplier. 
		
	
	Copies of these reports can be found online at:
	http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Sustainability/SocAction/Suppliers/CSR/Documentsl/Review%20of%20suppliers%20voluntary%20initiatives.pdf
	http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Sustainability/SocAction/Suppliers/CSR/Documentsl/CSRupdateopenletter23507.pdf
	http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Sustainability/SocAction/Suppliers/CSR/Documents1/Monitoring%20Suppliers%20Social%20Spend%20171.08.pdf

Energy: Prices

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what representations he has received on  (a) the adequacy of notice given to energy consumers of energy price rises and  (b) the length of time they are given to switch supplier after a price increase.

David Kidney: The Department receives a number of representations on a range of consumer matters, including on communications by energy suppliers to customers.
	Ofgem is responsible for setting the rules governing notifications. The rules include the timing in which suppliers must notify customers after a tariff change has been put in place, and the timing for customers to notify suppliers if they wish to terminate their supply contract and start the transfer process to another supplier.
	Ofgem carried out a review into the price notification period earlier this year, and is expected to publish its findings soon.

Energy: Prices

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of the performance of Ofgem in its regulation of British Gas tariff changes; and if he will make a statement.

David Kidney: holding answer 20 July 2009
	Following its Energy Supply Probe, Ofgem has made a number of proposals for amending regulation governing: information to consumers, time periods relating to notifications of tariff changes, the structure of tariffs and overarching standards for suppliers. Ofgem is also seeking improvements in suppliers' management of direct debits. We support Ofgem's work to pursue improvements to regulation where necessary.

Energy: Prices

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 8 June 2009,  Official Report, columns 719-20W, on energy: prices, if he will estimate the number of people in fuel poverty as a result of increases in energy prices arising from the implementation of commitments to reduce levels of carbon dioxide emissions.

David Kidney: It is not possible to currently estimate the net change in fuel poverty as a result of our climate change policies, as this will depend on which dwellings receive measures and the households that live in them in 2020.
	As our recent Climate Change Transition Plan makes clear, climate change policies will lead to significant and sustained savings on the domestic energy bills of those households who take up measures. As detailed in the analytical annex to this document, by 2020, funding of our climate change policies will lead domestic gas and electricity prices to rise. Households taking up climate change measures will be less affected by these rises as their consumption of gas and electricity will be reduced and in many cases, will see a reduction in their bill levels as a result.

Energy: Prices

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funding his Department is providing to finance the mandated social price support for household energy, as announced on page 12 of the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan.

David Kidney: By the final year of the voluntary agreement in 2010-11, energy suppliers will be spending £150 million per year on social programmes. Subject to the parliamentary timetable, the new mandated social price support policy will increase the funding made available by energy suppliers above £150 million per year after March 2011. In announcing this policy, our aim is to give the vulnerable households receiving help from energy suppliers under the current voluntary arrangements the confidence that similar help will be available after the voluntary agreement comes to an end.
	The Government will bring forward legislation at the earliest opportunity and will give more detail at around the time the legislation is introduced.

Environment Ministers: Meetings

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the outcomes were of the conference of Environment Ministers held in Greenland in July 2009; and what papers his Department circulated at the conference.

Joan Ruddock: The Greenland Dialogue meeting of Climate Change and Environment Ministers and senior negotiators produced a Chair's Summary. This highlighted, among other things, participants' commitment to success at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen this December, and the need for global warming to stay below 2 degrees. The Chair's Summary can be viewed on the Danish Ministry of Climate and Energy website at:
	www.kemin.dk/en-us/copl5/greenland_dialogue/Sider/Forside.aspx
	The UK did not formally circulate any papers at the meeting but did distribute copies of the Road to Copenhagen document and I spoke about my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's climate finance initiative.

Forestry

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his policy is on  (a) the form in which and  (b) the level to which industrialised countries should increase expenditure on forestry; what benefits he expects to accrue from expenditure on forestry; and what his policy is on the inclusion of forestry in carbon markets to prevent deforestation and degradation.

Joan Ruddock: The UK is working with other countries through the Working Group on Interim Finance for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) to build consensus on finance for forests in the run-up to the climate change negotiations in Copenhagen. Discussions are still in progress but the UK considers that a mix of grant support and public-private finance instruments will be needed. The level of expenditure required to achieve the EU's target of halving the rate of deforestation by 2020, while taking account of the concerns of indigenous peoples and local communities and realising biodiversity and other benefits, is still under discussion. The UK believes, as set out in The Road to Copenhagen, that in the medium to long term, including forests in the carbon market is the best solution to generating the scale of funding needed. It will take time to develop robust monitoring control and governance arrangements for this.

Forestry

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change to which forestry activities the declaration on international climate negotiations at the UK-French summit in Evian on 6 July 2009 referred.

Joan Ruddock: The forestry activities referred to in the UK-French declaration on the international climate negotiations relate to:
	reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation; and
	the conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

Fuel Poverty

Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he plans to take to reduce fuel poverty if energy prices increase in winter 2009-10.

David Kidney: Since 2000, we have spent £20 billion on fuel poverty benefits and programmes and we will continue to develop and implement a range of measures to tackle the drivers of fuel poverty, poor energy efficiency, low incomes and high energy prices.
	The Government's Warm Front scheme has a budget of £950 million during 2008-11 for the installation of heating and insulation measures available to vulnerable householders in receipt of a qualifying disability or income related benefit. In addition, DECC has just laid in legislation a 20 per cent. increase to the carbon emissions reduction target which will lead to energy suppliers making available an estimated £3.2 billion during 2008-11, 40 per cent. of which must be targeted at a priority group of low income consumers who are in receipt of benefits or are aged 70 and over. In addition, last September, the Prime Minister announced the Community Energy Saving Programme. This will deliver £350 million of energy efficiency measures to around 90,000 homes in 100 low income areas across Great Britain over a three-year period.
	To boost the income of vulnerable households, the increase in winter fuel payments, of an extra £50 for those aged 60-79 and £100 for those aged over 80, announced for the winter 2008-09, will continue for the coming winter.
	On prices, under the voluntary agreement with suppliers, spend on programmes of social assistance, including discounted social tariffs, will be £125 million this year, rising to £150 million next year. We have also recently announced in the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan, the intention to create a policy of mandated social price support at the earliest opportunity with resources increased compared to the existing voluntary agreement.

Fuels: Power Stations

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what proportion of  (a) oil,  (b) gas,  (c) coal and  (d) uranium used in power plants came from (i) UK resources and (ii) imported fuels in the most recent year for which figures are available.

David Kidney: The Department does not collect data on the source of fuels used in power plants. However, the following table shows, for oil, gas and coal, the proportions of total UK supply accounted for by imports (net of exports) and UK resources in 2008 and the proportion of total supply of each fuel used for electricity generation.
	The UK does not have exploitable natural uranium resources, therefore all natural uranium used for fuel in UK nuclear power stations is sourced overseas. Reprocessed uranium sourced from the Sellafield reprocessing plant has been processed into uranium for use as fuel. However, the Department does not hold data on the proportions of this used in power plants.
	
		
			   Oil (Thousand tonnes)  Gas (GWh)  Coal (Thousand tonnes) 
			 Net imports 11,664 284,565 43,165 
			 UK resources: production, stock changes and transfers 68,969 806,231 15,043 
			 Total supply 80,633 1,090,797 58,208 
			 Net imports proportion (percentage) 14.5 26.1 74.2 
			 UK resources proportion (percentage) 85.5 73.9 25.8 
			 Proportion of total supply used for electricity generation (percentage) 1.1 34.7 82.1 
			  Source: Tables 2.1, 3.1, 3.2 and 4.1, in Energy Trends, June 2009, available at: http://www.berr.gov.uk/energy/statistics/publications/dukes/page45537.html

Gloucestershire Energy Strategy

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress has been made in implementing the Gloucestershire Energy Strategy; and what recent discussions his Department has had with those responsible for the strategy.

David Kidney: Implementation of the Gloucestershire Energy Strategy is the responsibility of Gloucestershire county council. The Government Office for the South West (representing a number of Departments including DECC) have had several discussions with Gloucestershire county council and its partner organisations concerning the strategy and in particular its links with the Local Area Agreement which has a strong commitment to tackling climate change and fuel poverty.

Housing: Air Conditioning

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what information his Department collects on the number of homes in the UK which have domestic air conditioning installed; and in what proportion of homes it is estimated such systems will have been installed by  (a) 2020,  (b) 2030 and  (c) 2050.

Joan Ruddock: The Government Market Transformation Programme estimates that less than 1 per cent. of UK homes (c125,000) currently have some form of air conditioning equipment, with the majority being portable rather than installed units.
	We do not currently hold estimates of the number of air conditioning systems that we expect to see installed in UK homes in 2020, 2030 or 2050.

Industrial Diseases: Nottinghamshire

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many cases of  (a) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and  (b) vibration white finger there are in the post code area (i) NG20 and (ii) DN22.

David Kidney: The following table provides the number of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Vibration White Finger (VWF) claims registered under the British Coal litigation schemes in the postcode areas of NG20 and DN22.
	
		
			  Claims registered (at 19 July 2009) in postcode areas  NG20 and DN22 
			   Registered claim count 
			  Postcode District NG20  
			 COPD 5,321 
			 VWF 3,503 
			 Total 8,824 
			   
			  Postcode District DN22  
			 COPD 1,007 
			 VWF 750 
			 Total 1,757

Insulation: Housing

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funding is available to local authorities for programmes for loft insulation  (a) in (i) private and (ii) public residential housing and  (b) for community buildings.

Joan Ruddock: No central Government funding is provided to local authorities for loft insulation programmes in social housing. However, local authorities can use money provided through the major repairs allowance in the Housing Revenue Account Subsidy System and Supported Capital Expenditure for the Decent Homes Programme to install loft insulation in council owned homes. Local authorities also work with energy suppliers under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) to identify homes that could benefit from measures under this scheme.
	For private sector homes, Government have invested over £1 billion between 2008-09 and 2010-11 to help improve private sector housing for the most vulnerable. Allocations are paid to local authorities through the Regional Housing Pot as un-ring-fenced capital grants based on recommendations made by the Regional Housing Boards. In addition to tackling disrepair, the funds are often used to assist in the provision of energy efficiency measures.
	No central Government funding is provided to local authorities for insulating the lofts of community buildings. However, loft insulation is a relatively low-cost measure that provides substantial energy savings, so local authorities should expect a short payback period for their investment.

Liquefied Petroleum Gas

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the likely effect of the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan on families who use liquefied petroleum gas as a heating fuel; and if he will make a statement.

David Kidney: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan is a route map to a low carbon economy setting out the instruments the UK will use to meet its carbon budgets. This together with the Renewable Energy Strategy published at the same time also sets out how the UK will meet its target that 15 per cent. of energy should come from renewable resources by 2020.
	This will mean a transition over time from fossil fuels to renewable fuels for heating, supported by the introduction of the Renewable Heat Incentive from April 2011. LPG is a fossil fuel form of heating, often used in communities off the gas grid. We envisage that many families in rural communities will use the Renewable Heat Incentive and other schemes to switch to renewable and low carbon ways to heat their homes.

Low Carbon Buildings Programme

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much of the £45 million announced in Budget 2009 for the Low Carbon Buildings Programme is projected to be spent in 2009-10.

David Kidney: £30 million of the £45 million announced in Budget 2009 for the Low Carbon Buildings Programme is projected to be spent in 2009-10.

Low Carbon Energy

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to paragraph 7.28 of Budget 2009, how the £155 million of funding allocated to his Department for low-carbon energy and green manufacturing will be spent.

Joan Ruddock: The funding will deliver targeted support for sectors with high growth rate potential such as offshore wind, wave and tidal energy, and remove barriers to low carbon investment in the UK. The funding will also support innovative trialling of technologies in local community-based settings.
	Spending allocation decisions taken so far by Ministers total up to £81.2 million and comprise:
	up to £22.5 million for the Marine Energy Proving Fund;
	up to £10 million for the Green Villages, Towns and Cities Challenge;
	up to £6 million for renewable construction materials;
	up to £6 million for 'smart grid' innovation;
	up to £6 million for geothermal energy;
	up to £4 million for Pay as You Save Pilots;
	up to £1.7 million for the Whitehall District heating scheme; and
	up to £25 million towards the UK Innovation Investment Fund.
	The Energy White Paper and Low Carbon Industrial Strategy has more detail on these allocations.
	Further announcements on projects and sectors to be funded will be made over the coming months. Where it is possible to bid for elements of funding, the process for doing so will be made clear when funding is announced.

National Decommissioning Authority: Finance

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much and what proportion of the National Decommissioning Authority's budget has been spent on funding university research in each of the last 10 years; on what research projects this funding has been spent; and if he will make a statement.

David Kidney: Funding for university research in support of its core mission to decommission and clean up the nuclear legacy is a key part of the NDA's skills strategy. During financial year 2008-09, the NDA spent approximately £1.4 million on supporting university research through its Direct Research Portfolio and the Radioactive Waste Management Directorate (RWMD). Funding in previous years was not broken down so as to differentiate between university and other research but is estimated to have been in the order of around £1 million in each year. The NDA has also made a commitment of £10 million to support the establishment of the Dalton Cumbria facility, a joint venture with the university of Manchester which will see the establishment of a world-class research centre specialising in radiation science and nuclear engineering decommissioning.

Nuclear Power

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he plans to answer Question 280802, tabled on 16 June 2009, on coolant leaks and fires at UK nuclear installations.

David Kidney: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 20 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 1023-29W.

Nuclear Power Stations: Decommissioning

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the  (a) cost to date and  (b) future cost to the public purse of decommissioning nuclear power stations; and if he will make a statement.

David Kidney: The lifetime costs of decommissioning and cleaning up the fleet of Magnox nuclear power stations, only two of which are still operational, are set out in the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority's annual report and accounts 2008-09 published on 20 July 2009. The total discounted cost is estimated to be £9,233 million.
	The Nuclear Liabilities Fund (NLF) is responsible for meeting the decommissioning cost of British Energy's existing nuclear power stations, together with defuelling costs and certain British Energy uncontracted liabilities. As at 31 March 2009, the total discounted cost (at a rate of 2.2 per cent.) of the NLF's future liability is estimated to be £4,500 million.
	Any developers of new nuclear power stations will be obliged to meet the full costs of decommissioning and their full share of waste management and disposal costs.

Nuclear Power Stations: Pollution

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much in fines the Nuclear Inspectorate has imposed on  (a) companies,  (b) local authorities and  (c) individuals in respect of each type of pollution incident in each region in each year since 1997.

David Kidney: The Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII) does not impose fines directly. It may prosecute duty holders for breaches of health and safety law. If found guilty those duty holders may have fines imposed on them by the courts. In the following cases heard for breaches of health and safety law since 1997 fines were imposed after prosecutions were instigated by the NII. In all cases the fines were imposed on companies.
	
		
			  Date of hearing  Name of defendant  Fine imposed (£)  Costs awarded against defendant (£) 
			 25 November 1999 British Energy 30,000 5,700 
			 27 July 2000 Magnox Electric Ltd. 18,000 6,100 
			 18 January 2002 UKAEA Ltd. 4,000 57,800 
			 18 January 2002 AEA Technology plc 4,000 57,800 
			 6 March 2002 British Nuclear Fuels plc 15,000 4,500 
			 16 October 2006 British Nuclear Group Sellafield Ltd. 500,000 67,000 
			 12 July 2007 UKAEA Ltd. 15,000 - 
		
	
	The events giving rise to these prosecutions did not necessarily involve pollution. Events involving environmental pollution are primarily matters for the appropriate environmental agency.

Nuclear Power: Finance

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the oral answer to the hon. Member for Castle Point (Bob Spink), of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 38, on the G8 Summit, whether the £20 billion to be spent on nuclear power in the UK in the next few years will be from public funds.

David Kidney: As stated in the Nuclear White Paper, it will be for energy companies to fund, develop and build new nuclear power stations in the UK. Government estimates show that to replace existing capacity alone, £21 billion will need to be invested by energy companies.

Nuclear Power: Industrial Health and Safety

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the very small risks are which his Department has judged new nuclear power plants would pose in respect of safety, health, proliferation and security, as referred to on page 63 in chapter 2 of the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan.

David Kidney: The small risks referred to are those set out at page 22 and pages 74-80 of the 2008 White Paper on Nuclear Power.

Nuclear Power: Security

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the level of security of UK nuclear facilities from radiation leaks in the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

David Kidney: The Health and Safety Executive, who have responsibility for the day to day regulation of the nuclear industry, make regular assessments on the causes of incidents, including leaks, within the nuclear industry. Through HSE's programme of regular inspection of nuclear facilities they are able to ensure that nuclear operators are complying with relevant health, safety and security legislation and ensure that industry, as a whole, learns from individual incidents. Ministers in DECC periodically meet with HSE to ensure that the framework in place remains robust in managing the risk of future leaks.

Nuclear Power: Waste Disposal

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what categories of costs will be included in the full share of waste management and disposal cost, which energy companies funding, developing and building new nuclear power stations will be required to meet, as referred to on page 63 of the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan.

David Kidney: The Government consider that an operator's full share of waste management and disposal costs is:
	the costs that are directly attributable to disposing of new build higher activity waste into a geological disposal facility;
	a contribution towards the fixed costs of constructing such a geological disposal facility;
	a significant risk premium over and above these costs to take account of uncertainties around the cost of constructing such a facility and the time when it will be able to accept new build waste; and
	the cost of managing that waste pending disposal (or pending transfer for disposal).
	Separately, operators are also responsible for the full cost of disposing of low level waste in a disposal facility and managing this waste pending its disposal.

Nuclear Reactors

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how close to sea level each of the UK's  (a) existing and  (b) planned (i) nuclear reactors and (ii) nuclear waste storage facilities is; and if he will make a statement.

David Kidney: A simple comparison of sea level with ground level can be misleading, as it takes no account of local sea defences or local topography, both of which will be influential in determining the likelihood and magnitude of any flooding either on the site or its immediate environs.
	The safety of existing sites (including associated on- site waste storage and the low level waste repository near the village of Drigg) regarding sea level and flood risk is monitored by the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate. A site or sites for geological disposal of higher activity radioactive waste has not yet been identified. The design and safety case for any facility will consider the effects of sea levels, and changes in sea levels, on operational and post closure performance.
	The Government are running a strategic siting assessment to identify sites that are potentially suitable for the deployment of new nuclear power stations. The Government response to the consultation on the SSA criteria and process:
	http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file49865.pdf
	outlined that nominated sites would be assessed against their capacity to be protected against flood risk, tsunami and storm surge. This includes consideration of the potential effects of climate change, throughout the lifetime of the station including allowing for the safe and secure storage of all the spent fuel and intermediate level waste produced from operation and decommissioning until it can be sent for final disposal in a geological disposal facility (GDF). Nominators have provided information about the ground level of nominated sites, and this is available at:
	www.nuclearpowersiting.decc.gov.uk

Ofgem: Scotland

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what discussions he has had with Ofgem on the Scottish Power Pay in Advance tariff; and what his policy is on the licensing of Scottish Power to hold client money.

David Kidney: I have not discussed this tariff with Ofgem. However, in our White Paper 'A better deal for Consumers' published in July, the Government undertook to reassess the regulatory framework for prepayments in general, taking account of advice from the Office of Fair Trading and the Financial Services Authority and the recommendations to be contained within Consumer Focus's forthcoming report on the prepayments market. This report is expected this summer. The Government will work with the full range of stakeholders to assess what regulatory action would be sensible and practicable.

Renewable Energy

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what percentage of the UK's electricity demand he expects to be met from electricity generation supported by new feed-in tariffs by 2020.

David Kidney: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 As stated in the UK Renewable Energy Strategy, our central scenario includes a contribution from small scale renewable electricity generation of 2 per cent. of our electricity supply in 2020.
	In line with this we have proposed feed-in tariff levels in our Renewable Financial Incentives consultation available at
	http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/consultations/elec_financial/elec_financial.aspx

Renewable Energy

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change where his Department's Office for Renewable Energy Deployment will be based; who its director is; how many staff at each grade it will have; what budgetary allocations have been made for it over what period; and what arrangements the Office will establish for communications with the public and interested parties.

David Kidney: The Office for Renewable Energy Deployment (ORED) will be based in the Department of Energy and Climate Change. ORED will be headed by a chief executive, Simon Virley, and the recruitment of a non-executive expert chair of ORED is under way. Staffing, budgets and other arrangements are currently being finalised.

Renewable Energy

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what proportion of  (a) energy and  (b) electricity in (i) the UK and (ii) each region came from renewable sources in each year since 1997.

David Kidney: Information on the electricity generated from renewable sources as a percentage of all electricity generated in the UK and the proportion of primary energy demand accounted for by non-waste renewable sources in each year since 1997 is shown in table 1. Also shown are the data from 2004 onwards which monitor progress against the EU Renewable Energy Directive; the directive uses different definitions to the data available from 1997.
	Data on electricity generation are not available at a regional level, since information at this level is disclosive. However information is available that shows the proportion of electricity generated in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland which came from all renewable sources for 2004 to 2007; this is shown in table 2. Data on all energy generation by region or country are not available.
	
		
			  Table 1: Percentage of electricity and energy in the UK obtained from renewable sources 
			  Percentage 
			   Electricity generated from renewable sources as a percentage of all electricity generated in the UK  Energy from non-waste renewable sources as a percentage of UK primary energy demand  Renewables consumption as a percentage of capped gross final energy consumption, used to monitor the Renewable Energy Directive 
			 1997 2.0 0.8 - 
			 1998 2.4 0.8 - 
			 1999 2.6 0.9 - 
			 2000 2.6 0.9 - 
			 2001 2.5 0.9 - 
			 2002 2.9 1.1 - 
			 2003 2.7 1.2 - 
			 2004 3.6 1.4 1.2 
			 2005 4.3 1.7 1.4 
			 2006 4.6 1.8 1.6 
			 2007 4.9 2.0 1.8 
			 2008 5.5 2.4 2.25 
			  Source Data up to and including 2007 from the 2008 edition of the Digest of UK Energy Statistics; data for 2008 from the June 2009 edition of Energy Trends. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Percentage of electricity generated in each country obtained from renewable sources 
			  Percentage 
			   England  Wales  Scotland  Northern Ireland 
			 2004 2.4 2.9 11.7 2.1 
			 2005 3.0 3.5 13.2 2.8 
			 2006 3.1 4.0 13.3 3.4 
			 2007 3.1 4.4 17.1 4.5 
			  Source: December 2008 edition of Energy Trends.

Renewable Energy: Hampshire

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what plans he has to exploit renewable sources of energy in the ceremonial county of Hampshire; and whether sites have been identified for the development of renewable energy sources within the county.

David Kidney: On 15 July we published our Renewable Energy Strategy detailing an action plan for increasing renewable energy deployment throughout the UK, including measures at local and regional level.
	However, it is for the market to bring forward proposals for renewable energy projects in specific areas.

Renewable Energy: Ministerial Responsibilities

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when the hon. Member for Nottingham South (Alan Simpson) was appointed to the post of special adviser on renewable energy and feed-in tariffs; how many meetings  (a) he and  (b) his Department's officials have had with the special adviser since his appointment; and what advice the adviser has provided since appointment.

David Kidney: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 DECC Ministers have frequent meetings with parliamentary colleagues. My hon. Friend the Member for Nottingham, South (Alan Simpson) has not held meetings with officials. My hon. Friend is not employed as a special adviser but has had discussions with my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for North Warwickshire (Mr. O'Brien) on the subject of feed-in tariffs since the passage of the Energy Act 2008.

River Severn: Tidal Power

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he plans to publish the Government's response to the public consultation on the scope of the Severn Tidal Power feasibility study.

David Kidney: The Government response to the public consultation on Severn tidal power was published on 15 July alongside the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan and the Renewable Energy Strategy. The Government response confirms high level analysis of the impact of three barrages and two lagoons and work to bring forward three further schemes using embryonic technologies-two tidal fences and a low head barrage.

Strategic Siting Assessment Programme

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the cost was of the Strategic Siting Assessment Programme; and what proportion of that cost has been recovered from applicant companies.

David Kidney: The Government set out in the 2008 Nuclear White Paper that it would conduct a Strategic Siting Assessment (SSA) to identify sites which are potentially suitable for the deployment of new nuclear power stations by the end of 2025. The sites identified through this process will be listed in the proposed National Policy Statement for Nuclear Power.
	The Government consulted on the criteria and process for the SSA in 2008, and set out the process in their Government Response to consultation at:
	http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file49865.pdf
	This process does not include charging nominators for the cost of assessing sites.
	Any new nuclear power stations would be proposed, developed, constructed and operated by energy companies. It is Government's role to set the right policy framework to attract investment in energy projects. In the past Government have undertaken strategic siting assessments for offshore renewables and for the licensing of oil and gas exploration in the North Sea. As with those projects, the cost of the SSA will be met by Government as part of their role to set the policy framework for energy investments.
	The approximate costs from inception to date are shown in the following table. These are costs of consultancy organisations who have contributed towards delivering the SSA. This does not include DECC staff costs.
	
		
			  Activity  Cost (£) 
			 Development of the SSA process and criteria 409,000 
			 Publicity and consultation on the SSA process, criteria and nominations 331,200 
			 Carrying out the strategic siting assessment and associated Appraisal of Sustainability (AoS) incorporating a Strategic Environmental Assessment and a Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA). Both the AoS and the HRA are legal requirements on Government in developing the Nuclear National Policy Statement 1,019,000 
			 Total 1,759,200

Warm Front Scheme

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will place in the Library a copy of the report on each of the Gateway Reviews conducted in relation to the Warm Front scheme.

David Kidney: I have arranged for copies of the reports to be placed in the House Library.

Warm Front Scheme

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will place in the Library a copy of each of the last six half-yearly audit reports on the Warm Front scheme produced by White Young Green.

David Kidney: The Warm Front Scheme is the Government's flagship scheme for eradicating fuel poverty. White Young Green is the independent quality assurance assessor for the Warm Front Scheme. White Young Green normally produces a Quality Assurance Assessor's Report every six months. It is not usual practice to release reports of this nature.

Warm Front Scheme

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 20 April 2009,  Official Report, column 327W, on the Warm Front scheme, if he will place in the Library a copy of the  (a) agenda and  (b) minutes of each meeting of the Warm Front Scheme Management Board since 2005.

David Kidney: The Warm Front Scheme is the Government's flagship scheme for eradicating fuel poverty. The Warm Front Scheme Management Board oversees the delivery and performance of the Warm Front Scheme and its contribution to achievement of the Government's fuel poverty and wider targets. It is not usual practice to release board agendas and minutes of this nature.

Warm Front Scheme

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many people in  (a) Derbyshire and  (b) West Derbyshire constituency are eligible for a grant for insulation and heating improvements under the Warm Front scheme.

David Kidney: The Department does not record how many households are eligible for a Warm Front grant in Derbyshire and West Derbyshire constituency.

Warm Front Scheme: Boilers

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many new  (a) oil boilers and  (b) liquefied petroleum gas boilers have been installed under the Warm Front programme in each year since it was established.

David Kidney: The following table details the number of  (a) oil boilers installed and replaced and  (b) liquefied petroleum gas boilers replaced under the Warm Front Scheme in each year since the beginning of the Scheme. Prior to 2005 oil and liquefied petroleum gas boilers were not installed as a standard measure under the Scheme.
	
		
			  Measure  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  Total 
			 Oil Boiler Installations and Replacements 155 1,507 1,820 2,507 5,988 
			 Liquefied Petroleum Gas Boiler Replacements 6 226 400 652 1,284

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Architects Registration Board

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many full-time equivalent employees the Architects Registration Board employs; what its budget for 2009-10 is; and how much it will receive in support from his Department in 2009-10;
	(2)  what remuneration the Chief Executive of the Architects Registration Board received in the most recent year for which figures are available.

John Healey: The Architects Registration Board currently employs 22 full-time members of staff. The budget for 2009 is £3,438,538. The budget for 2010 is currently being discussed by the board. The registrar (effectively the chief executive) receives a salary of £98,705. I have asked the ARB to write to you separately to confirm these details.
	The Architects Registration Board will receive no funds from my Department in 2009-10. The Architects Registration Board is funded by the registration fees paid annually by architects in the UK which are currently set at £86 per year.

Bed and Breakfast Accommodation

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many families with children were accommodated in bed and breakfast accommodation in each local authority area in each of the last four quarters for which figures are available.

John Healey: Information about English local housing authorities' actions under the homelessness legislation (Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996) is collected quarterly at local authority level, and available at:
	www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/homelessnessq12009
	Data collected include the number of households accepted by local housing authorities as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and therefore owed a main homelessness duty (to secure that suitable accommodation is available). If a settled home is not immediately available, the authority must secure temporary accommodation until a settled home becomes so.
	The number of households housed in temporary accommodation by local authorities as at the last day of each quarter, is also collected. This figure consists of those households which have been accepted as owed the main homelessness duty; those for which inquiries are pending; those being accommodated for a limited period because they have been found intentionally homeless and in priority need; those being accommodated pending possible referral to another authority; and those being accommodated pending the outcome of a local authority review or county court appeal.
	The figures for households with dependent children and/or a pregnant woman accommodated in bed and breakfast temporary accommodation as reported by each local authority in the last four quarters have been placed in the Library of the House.

Council Tax: Students

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will bring forward legislative proposals to exempt from liability for council tax payments unemployed spouses of undergraduate students who are designated as dependants of those students; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: No. The Local Government Finance Act 1992 makes available a single person discount of 25 per cent. for households where one adult (including a spouse) is liable for council tax. Also, Class N of the Council Tax (Exempt Dwellings) Order 1992 provides exemption for dwellings solely occupied by full time students and their non-British spouses.

Damian McBride

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on what date he last met Mr. Damian McBride in the course of his official duties.

Shahid Malik: My right hon. Friend has had no such meetings.

Departmental Billing

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what percentage of invoices from suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in June 2009.

Shahid Malik: The percentage of invoices from suppliers paid by the Department within 10 days of receipt in June 2009 was 90.53 per cent.

Departmental Board Members

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether each of his Department's non-executive directors has made a declaration of political activity.

Shahid Malik: Non-executive members of the departmental board are required under the terms and conditions of their appointment to declare to the permanent secretary any personal or business interest which may, or may be perceived to, influence their judgment in performing their functions and obligations as members of the board.
	There are currently six non-executive board members, none of whom have declared any political activities under this provision.

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what percentage of employees in his Department  (a) are on a flexible working contract,  (b) are on a job share employment contract and  (c) work from home for more than four hours a week.

Shahid Malik: Only details of those staff working less than full-time hours are held centrally. As at the end of June 2009, 243 members of staff were recorded as working on a part-time basis.
	Other data on other types of flexible working e.g. job sharing, compressed hours, home working are not collected centrally, as this is agreed at the line manager's discretion and in accordance with our flexible working policy.

Departmental Contracts

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many contracts let by his Department were awarded to businesses with fewer than 50 employees in each of the last five years; and what the monetary value of such contracts was in each such year.

Shahid Malik: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The Department is currently putting in place systems that will identify small and medium enterprises on its finance system which will allow this to be reported on in the future.

Departmental Cost Effectiveness

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what Gershon efficiency savings his Department has made in each of the last three years.

Shahid Malik: The details of the efficiency savings delivered within our SR04 Gershon efficiency programme were published in the Department's 2008 Autumn Performance Report, which reported achievement of £1,444 million efficiency savings against a target of at least £620 million efficiency savings by March 2008.

Departmental Finance

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his Department's budget is for  (a) 2009-10 and  (b) 2010-11; and what changes have been made to previous plans for the budget as a consequence of (i) funding being diverted from other Departments as a consequence of proposals in the Draft Legislative Programme 2009-10 and (ii) funding being brought forward from later years.

Shahid Malik: The Department's 2009 Annual Report shows Communities and Local Government's overall budget for 2009-10 and 2010-11 as £13.2 billion and £10.8 billion respectively. These figures reflect over £1.5 billion of funding brought forward from 2010-11 as well as new funding announced at Budget 2009.
	Additional funding of up to £930 million for new affordable housing (as announced in 'Building Britain's Future') will come from a mixture of reprioritisation, efficient programme management and anticipated underspends in other Departments.

Departmental Internet

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 485W, on departmental internet, what the  (a) names and  (b) versions are of the web browsers used on the (i) desktop machines and (ii) laptop computers used by his Department's (A) Permanent Secretary, (B) chief information officer, (C) head of communications and (D) head of finance.

Shahid Malik: All of these officers use Microsoft Internet Explorer v6.0.2900.2180.xpsp_sp2_gdr.050301-1519 which is the standard for CLG's desktops and laptops.

Departmental Postal Services

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department spent on Royal Mail services in each of the last two years.

Shahid Malik: The Department for Communities and Local Government has spent the following using Royal Mail within the last two years:
	
		
			  1 April to 31 March  £ 
			 2008 90,656.69 
			 2009 53,389.25

Departmental Procurement

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress his Department has made in implementing the recommendations of the Glover Report in its procurement processes.

Shahid Malik: The Department is currently developing its strategy for small and medium enterprise engagement and has started to collect small and medium enterprise (SME) expenditure data.

Departmental Responsibilities

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the responsibilities are of each Minister in his Department.

Shahid Malik: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State holds overall responsibility for the business of the Department and its policies.
	My right hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Planning (John Healey) leads on housing, planning, climate change and sustainable development.
	My right hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government (Ms. Winterton) leads on local government, regions, regeneration and worklessness. She is also a Minister for the Department of Business Innovation and Skills and Minister for Yorkshire and the Humber.
	I lead on the fire service, community cohesion, race and migration, preventing extremism, the Thames Gateway and the Olympic legacy.
	My hon. Friend the Member for Dudley, North (Mr. Austin) supports on housing, planning, climate change and sustainable development. He is also Minister for the West Midlands.
	My noble Friend Lord McKenzie of Luton supports on local government, and covers the Department's business in the House of Lords.

Departmental Responsibilities

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which Minister in his Department is responsible for  (a) Travellers,  (b) Pathfinder Housing Market Renewal and  (c) the QE2 Conference Centre.

Shahid Malik: The ministerial responsibilities are as follows:
	 (a) I am responsible;
	 (b) My right hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Planning (John Healey) supported by my hon. Friend the Member for Dudley North (Mr. Austin);
	 (c) I am responsible.

Departmental Responsibilities

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the Ministerial responsibilities relating to local government are of Lord McKenzie of Luton as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in his Department.

Shahid Malik: My noble Friend supports my right hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government (Ms Winterton) on such local government policies as the business of the Department demands.

Eco-Towns

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what guidance has been published by his Department on waste policy in eco-towns;
	(2)  what guidance has been published by his Department on transport policy in eco-towns;
	(3)  what guidance has been published on the planning process for eco-town travel plans.

John Healey: As set out in my written statement on 16 July 2008,  Official Report, column 42WS, my Department published 'Planning Policy Statement: Eco-towns' (PPS), which sets out the standards that eco-towns will have to meet, including standards for transport and waste. I have placed copies of the PPS in the Library of the House.
	As part of their work with us on eco-towns, the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) have produced a series of best practice guidance worksheets to support those taking forward eco-towns. This includes worksheets on waste and transport, and these are available on the TCPA's website
	http://www.tcpa.org.uk/pages/sustainability-worksheets.html
	The transport worksheet supplements the initial guidance produced by the Department for Transport, 'Building Sustainable Transport into New Developments: A Menu of Options for Growth Points and Eco-towns', and looks at travel planning and implementing sustainable transport approaches.

Eco-Towns: Middle Quinton

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 16 July 2009, on eco-towns and zero carbon homes, if he will withdraw the proposal for an eco-town at Long Marston from the West Midlands Regional Spatial Strategy review process; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: I will make a decision on the proposal for an eco-town at Long Marston after the Department has received the report of the panel on the West Midlands Regional Spatial Strategy. Any decision will also take into account any further representations on any new or additional matters which may arise in relation to the proposed Middle Quinton eco-town at Long Marston.

Empty Dwelling Management Orders

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance his Department has issued on the use of empty dwelling management orders in respect of empty dwellings occupied by  (a) squatters and  (b) Travellers.

John Healey: No guidance has been issued on this point.

EU Law

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the proportion of statutory obligations provided for by legislation on matters for which his Department is responsible which were introduced as a consequence of obligations arising from EU legislation in the latest period for which figures are available;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of the statutory obligations upon it provided for in legislation introduced as a consequence of obligations arising from EU legislation in the most recent 12 months for which figures are available.

Rosie Winterton: The Department does not hold this information.
	It is very difficult to provide precise figures for the proportion of UK legislation that stems from the European Union. The important consideration is not the origins of a piece of legislation, but the quality of the regulation. All regulations, irrespective of their origins, should comply with the principles of better regulation. The Government continue to work with European partners to ensure that EU regulations meet these standards.

Fire Services: Industrial Disputes

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which fire authorities have entered into contracts with private sector companies to provide fire cover in the event of industrial action.

Shahid Malik: The provision of fire cover within a fire and rescue authority in the event of industrial action, is the responsibility of that fire and rescue authority. The Department does not collect information from fire and rescue authorities as to whether they have engaged private sector companies to provide emergency fire cover in the event of industrial action.
	However, we understand that London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority have entered into a contract for the provision of an Emergency Fire Crew Capability Service to the London Fire Brigade. We are not currently aware of any other similar contracts.

Fires: Domestic Waste

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Peterborough (Mr. Jackson) of 3 July 2009,  Official Report, column 454W, on fires: waste, if he will commission research into the scope and frequency of household arson attacks involving wheeled refuse containers.

Shahid Malik: There are currently no centrally held data on the number of wheeled refuse container fires. The recently implemented electronic Incident Recording System (IRS) records all incidents attended by Fire and Rescue Services. From the data held on IRS it will be possible to identify deliberate fires as well as the number and location of wheeled refuse container fires attended by Fire and Rescue Services. These data will be available for 2009-10 and so should provide information on the frequency of fires in wheeled refuse containers and their involvement in household arson attacks.
	The Government fund research on fire and resilience matters through several routes, one of which is the annual Fire and Resilience Research and Statistics Programme. Potential research projects for the Programme are discussed and prioritised based on the Department's policy needs and also in close consultation with Fire and Rescue Service stakeholders, such as the Chief Fire Officers Association. The Programme for 2009-10 has been finalised. A potential research project on the scope of fires in wheeled refuse containers will be included in this process for 2010-11 and we will ensure engagement with the Arson Control Forum as key stakeholders.

Fires: Domestic Waste

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Peterborough (Mr. Jackson) of 3 July 2009,  Official Report, column 454W, on fires: waste, what guidance  (a) his Department and  (b) the Fire Service College has issued to firefighters and fire services on tackling fires deliberately set in wheeled refuse containers.

Shahid Malik: Neither my Department nor the Fire Service College has issued guidance to firefighters and the fire and rescue service in relation to tackling fires which have been deliberately set in wheeled refuse containers. Individual Fire and Rescue Authorities may, however, have developed operational procedures or policy on the issue.

Gardens

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what information his Department and its agencies hold on the proportion and number of households with access to private gardens.

John Healey: The Department does not hold information on the proportion and number of households with access to private gardens.

Gardens: Helicopters

John Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what planning provision he intends to make to regulate the use of back gardens for the landing of helicopters;
	(2)  what guidance he has provided to local authorities on the application of legislation relating to neighbour behaviour which might be used in relation to the landing of helicopters in confined spaces.

John Healey: The planning system exists to control development and protect the amenity of others. Where use of a garden to land helicopters involves development of some kind existing regulations would apply. The Government have no plans to amend the law in this respect.
	The Government have not issued any guidance in relation to the landing of helicopters in confined spaces by neighbours.

Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment.

Shahid Malik: My right hon. Friend has no plans to visit Glasgow.

Green Belt

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in what locations the regional spatial strategies submitted to his Department propose a review of green belt protection with a view to reducing the present level of protection.

John Healey: The level of protection afforded to green belt would not be affected by any regional spatial strategy-this is set out in National Planning Policy. Policies in regional spatial strategies may recommend that, in a particular area, there should be a review of which areas should be designated as green belt.

Green Belt: Cambridgeshire

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps his Department is taking to protect  (a) green belts and  (b) green open spaces in (i) Huntingdonshire and (ii) Cambridgeshire.

John Healey: National and regional planning policy (Planning Policy Guidance Note 2 and the East of England Plan) both contain policy to protect Green Belt land and there remains a strong presumption against development.
	The East of England Plan, published in May 2008 confirmed that the broad extent of green belts in the East of England, including around Cambridge, is appropriate and should be maintained.
	Government Planning Policy (Policy Guidance Note 17) sets out the Government's approach to the provision of open space. The East of England Plan (Policy ENV1) also includes policy on creation and maintenance and creation of networks of green infrastructure. The Local Development Plans of Cambridge City Council and Huntingdonshire district council will then make provision for open green space, including the setting of open space standards.

Home Information Packs

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of home condition reports that were completed in each of the last three years.

John Healey: The full year figures for the number of voluntary home condition reports (HCRs) which have been lodged on the HCR register are 1680 in 2007 and 120 in 2008. Figures for 2009 will be available after the year end.

Homelessness

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of people of no fixed abode in each region in England.

John Healey: Information about the total number of people in England with no fixed abode is not held centrally.

Homes and Communities Agency: Pay

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the salary is of each  (a) board member and  (b) executive team member of the (i) Homes and Communities Agency and (ii) Tenant Services Authority.

John Healey: The remuneration for the HCA chair was previously detailed in the Department's press notice of 27 June 2008, and for the TSA chair in the press notice of 13 May 2008. Information on the remuneration for the HCA and TSA's other board members was included in the Department's press notice of 17 October 2008.
	The remuneration for the HCA and TSA's board, chief executive and other key senior executives will be published in the relevant 2008-09 annual report and accounts later this year.

Homes and Communities Agency: Pay

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many  (a) board members and  (b) employees of (i) the Homes and Communities Agency and (ii) the Tenant Services Authority received a bonus in the last 12 months; and what the average bonus payment was;
	(2)  how many  (a) board members and  (b) employees of the (i) Homes and Communities Agency and (ii) Tenant Services Authority are paid more than (A) £50,000, (B) £75,000 and (C) £100,000 per annum;
	(3)  how much the  (a) Homes and Communities Agency and  (b) Tenant Services Authority has paid in staff bonuses in the last 12 months.

John Healey: Information on pay and bonuses for the Homes and Communities Agency and the Tenant Services Authority will be included in their annual report and accounts. Additional details will be published by both the HCA and TSA later this year.

Housing Associations

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what powers local authorities have to set up housing associations.

John Healey: There is no express provision in statute allowing local authorities to set up housing associations, although there is a general power available to local authorities to do anything which would promote or improve the economic, social or environmental well-being of an area.
	The Housing Act 1985 allows a local authority to facilitate the creation of a housing association through the transfer of its housing to another person (subject to consultation, a ballot of tenants and the consent of the Secretary of State).

Housing Investment Trusts

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many housing investment trusts have been established since 1996.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: I have been asked to reply.
	Housing Investment Trusts, known as HITs, were introduced in the 1996 Finance Act. No HITs were ever created. Legislation creating the HIT regime was repealed by Finance Act 2006 following two consultations, during which there was no opposition to repeal.

Housing Market

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many residential properties were sold in England in 2008-09; and what estimate his Department has made of the number of such properties expected to be sold in 2009-10.

John Healey: Data published by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs report the number of residential property transaction completions with a value of £40,000 or above in England in 2008-09 as 664,000. We have not made any estimates for transactions in England for 2009-10.

Housing: Construction

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many new homes were built in  (a) Hemel Hempstead,  (b) Dacorum and  (c) Hertfordshire in each of the last eight quarters.

John Healey: Information on house building completions is not available below the spatial level of local authority.
	The following table shows the number of new homes built in each local authority in Hertfordshire county in each of the last eight quarters.
	
		
			   2007  2008  2009 
			  Local authority  April to June  July to September  October to December  January to March  April to June  July to September  October to December  January to March 
			  Hert fordshire 
			 Broxbourne 36 33 71 94 44 46 35 53 
			 Dacorum 83 85 113 35 97 148 83 28 
			 East Hertfordshire 99 - 46 76 36 97 51 84 
			 Hertsmere 42 69 167 38 96 36 55 9 
			 North Hertfordshire 157 34 131 25 5 7 35 20 
			 St. Albans - - - - - - - - 
			 Stevenage 62 63 231 16 11 90 80 42 
			 Three Rivers 106 41 45 35 38 79 104 59 
			 Watford 5 3 96 94 174 117 92 27 
			 Welwyn Hatfield 185 198 126 178 76 23 34 15 
			  Source: New build completions from P2 quarterly returns submitted by local authorities and the National House-Building Council to CLG. 
		
	
	Data on numbers of new build housing starts and completions by district are published routinely on the CLG website. The latest data can be found at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/140921.xls

Housing: Construction

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many houses in each of the millennium villages have been built; and in what locations.

John Healey: Since the programme began in 1997, the number of houses in each millennium village and the locations in which they have been built are:
	
		
			  Millennium community  Location  Completed homes 
			 Greenwich Millennium Village Greenwich, London 1,099 
			 New Islington Manchester 179 
			 Allerton Bywater Leeds 172 
			 Kings Lynn Kings Lynn, Norfolk 109 
			 Telford Telford 53 
			 Hastings Hastings 0 
			 Oakgrove Milton Keynes 18 
			 Total  1,630

Housing: Elderly

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government who the members are of the Housing our Ageing Population Panel for Innovation established by the Homes and Communities Agency; and what the remit of the panel is.

John Healey: The housing our ageing population panel for innovation (HAPPI) will gather good practice from across Europe and put together new and creative proposals to help inform the HCA on scope for innovative housing for older people.
	The membership of this panel is:
	Lord Richard Best OBE, president, Local Government Association (Chair)
	Anne Ashworth, property editor,  The Times
	Roger Battersby, managing director of PRP Architects
	John Belcher CBE, chief executive of Anchor Trust
	Anthony Hamilton, user representative
	Sir Richard MacCormac CBE, McCormac Jamieson Prichard
	Aggie MacKenzie, journalist and television presenter
	Peter Maxwell, head of enabling, Public Buildings, CABE
	John Penton MBE, architect, member of the Council of City  Guilds
	Tony Pidgley, chairman, Berkeley Homes
	Anne Power MBE, CBE, professor of social policy, LSE
	Judith Torrington, reader in architecture, University of Sheffield
	Dru Vesty MBE, chair of HCA design and sustainability advisory group

Housing: Expenditure

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 16 June 2009,  Official Report, column 203W, on housing: expenditure, how much his Department plans to spend on capital expenditure on housing in each of the next two years.

John Healey: holding answer 22 June 2009
	Capital expenditure in this instance is taken to cover grants to the private sector, contributions to registered social landlords, and expenditure on council-owned housing stock.
	The total planned investment for next year (2010-11) is £4,492 million. This includes additional funding of £510 million to be invested in new affordable housing as announced in 'Building Britain's Future'. This will be made available from anticipated underspends in other departments. However this figure excludes the major repairs allowance (MRA) element of housing revenue account subsidy, because the figure will not be known until 2010. For information, MRA for the current financial year is £1,277 million.
	Budgets for 2011-12 will be subject to the next spending review.

Housing: Low Incomes

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many houses provided under the National Affordable Housing Programme 2008-11 under projects with starts in London after March 2009  (a) there will be in each borough,  (b) will be new build,  (c) will be converted from privately-developed units and (d) will have (i) one, (ii) two, (iii) three and (iv) four or more bedrooms.

John Healey: The number of new build homes forecast to start on site through the National Affordable Housing Programme since March 2009 are set out in the table. These figures show the current position and more starts on site will be added as the Homes and Communities Agency allocates more funding to successful bids for grant.
	
		
			  National Affordable Housing Programme-forecast starts on site 
			   Number of bedrooms 
			   1  2  3  4  Total 
			 Barking and Dagenham 115 85 25 13 238 
			 Barnet 77 146 104 11 338 
			 Bexley 67 144 56 14 281 
			 Brent 196 223 98 36 553 
			 Bromley 74 79 34 8 195 
			 Camden 43 47 34 1 125 
			 Croydon 78 211 86 46 421 
			 Ealing 107 94 44 3 248 
			 Enfield 176 186 56 9 427 
			 Greenwich 315 490 223 110 1,138 
			 Hackney 201 261 164 87 713 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 20 70 73 8 171 
			 Haringey 62 125 35 23 245 
			 Harrow 102 130 69 67 368 
			 Havering 126 173 122 31 452 
			 Hillingdon 46 118 55 27 246 
			 Hounslow 15 32 15 6 68 
			 Islington 226 230 57 11 524 
			 Kingston upon Thames 6 8 5 9 28 
			 Lambeth 97 123 48 10 278 
			 Lewisham 370 433 100 33 936 
			 Merton 81 142 37 54 314 
			 Newham 359 942 354 164 1,819 
			 Redbridge 96 77 47 11 231 
			 Richmond upon Thames 4 26 18 0 48 
			 Southwark 271 380 205 27 883 
			 Sutton 33 124 104 16 277 
			 Tower Hamlets 707 788 352 118 1,965 
			 Waltham Forest 89 169 76 30 364 
			 Wandsworth 52 42 8 0 102 
			 Westminster 69 108 72 5 254 
			 Grand total 4,280 6,206 2,776 988 14,250 
			 Source: Homes and Communities Agency 
		
	
	Conversions from completed privately developed units are not classified as starts on site by the Homes and Communities Agency.

Housing: Low Incomes

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many homes he expects to be sold under the HomeBuy Direct scheme.

John Healey: HomeBuy Direct is a demand led scheme. There are currently over 8,500 homes available under the scheme.

Housing: Low Incomes

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many HomeBuy Direct sales there were in each of the last three months.

John Healey: The following table shows provisional HomeBuy Direct sales figures for the last three months.
	
		
			   Number 
			 April 2009 3 
			 May 2009 21 
			 June 2009 194 
			  Source: Homes and Communities Agency

LLM Communications

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 22 June 2009,  Official Report, column 651W, on LLM Communications, whether LLM Communications received payment for their services  (a) directly from his Department,  (b) from the Campaign for More and Better Homes or  (c) by another method;
	(2)  if he will publish the remit and terms of reference given LLM Communications by the Campaign for More and Better Homes;
	(3)  how much funding his Department has allocated to the Campaign for More and Better Homes to date; for what purpose such funding was allocated; and which Minister approved the allocation;
	(4)  what role the special adviser to the Minister for Housing and Planning played in the regional campaigns by LLM Communications;
	(5)  which local authorities were targeted as part of the LLM Communications campaign on the benefits of housing growth.

John Healey: In 2006, the Campaign for More and Better Homes (CMBH), an independent, pre-existing cross-sector Housing Alliance, sought funding for a series of regional housing debates to help raise public awareness of the need for, and benefits of housing growth. The Department agreed and granted them £25000, CMBH commissioned LLM Communications as their PR agency to deliver these debates in 2006-07. The Department paid LLM Communications directly.
	The current special adviser to the Minister for Housing and Planning was not involved and had no role in the regional housing debates delivered by CMBH.

Local Government Delivery Council

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 12 June 2009,  Official Report, column 1061W, on the Local Government Delivery Council, if he will place in the Library a copy of the minutes of each meeting of the Delivery Council since September 2007 held by  (a) his Department and  (b) the Government Office Network.

Rosie Winterton: No meetings of the Local Government Delivery Council have been held by my Department or by the Government Office Network.
	As referred to in the earlier answer, the Council was established under the auspices of the Local Government Association (LGA). It reports to the LGA Improvement Board and the secretariat for the Council is provided by the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA), a member organisation of the LGA Group.

Local Government: Databases

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what datastreams which are not in the National Indicator set his Department collects from local authorities.

Rosie Winterton: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Member for Wentworth (John Healey) on 2 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 965W-966W.

Local Government: Debt Collection

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  on how many occasions each local authority in England  (a) issued a court order and  (b) authorised bailiff action in respect of debts and charges in each of the last three years;
	(2)  on how many occasions each local authority in England  (a) issued a court order and  (b) authorised bailiff action in respect of housing benefit in each of the last three years;
	(3)  on how many occasions each local authority in England  (a) issued a court order and  (b) authorised bailiff action in respect of parking charges in each of the last three years.

Shahid Malik: Communities and Local Government does not collect this information.

Local Government: Pensions

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he plans to take to reduce the cost of the Local Government Pension Scheme to the public purse.

Rosie Winterton: The provisions which regulate the Local Government Pension Scheme in England and Wales provide a prudent and stable regime from within which the individual scheme administering authorities can assess and manage their costs. Triennial valuations of each scheme pension fund establish new employer contribution rates to ensure ongoing solvency. The next valuation exercise takes place on 31 March 2010 and new rates will take effect from 1 April 2011.

Monuments: Armed Conflict

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance has been issued to local authorities on protection of war memorials from redevelopment.

John Healey: General guidance on planning and the historic environment is in planning policy guidance (PPG) note 15. This highlights the need for the historic environment to be fully taken into account both in the formulation of local authorities' planning policies and in development control. It also includes specific guidance on listed building control, which is relevant for war memorials that have been listed. A consultation document on a revised planning policy statement to replace PPG 15 and PPG 16 (archaeology and planning) will be published very shortly.

National Housing and Planning Advice Unit

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many full-time equivalent employees the National Housing and Planning Advice Unit employs; what its budget for 2009-10 is; and how much it will receive in support from his Department in 2009-10.

John Healey: The National Housing and Planning Advice Unit currently employs 12.8 full-time equivalent staff. It also has six board members who are paid for up to a maximum of 30 days per year each.
	Its budget for 2009-10 is £1,433,710, which is entirely funded by Communities and Local Government.

Non-Domestic Rates

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many businesses have claimed  (a) small business rate relief,  (b) mandatory relief,  (c) discretionary relief,  (d) rural settlement relief and  (e) hardship relief in (i) St Ives constituency, (ii) Cornwall and (iii) England in each of the last five years.

Rosie Winterton: Details of the number of businesses claiming business rate reliefs as at 31 December 2007 and 31 December 2008 in Penwith district council, Cornwall and England are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of hereditaments in receipt of business rate relief  as at 31 December 2007 
			   Penwith  Cornwall  England 
			 Mandatory relief 509 3,075 275,159 
			  of which:
			 Rural rate relief 55 346 6,603 
			 Empty property relief 241 1,518 186,370 
			 
			 Discretionary relief 206 1,432 48,767 
			  of which:
			 Rural rate relief 24 179 3,515 
		
	
	
		
			  Number of hereditaments in receipt of business rate relief  as at 31 December 2008 
			   Cornwall  England 
			 Mandatory relief 3,452 236,636 
			  of which:   
			 Rural rate relief 350 6,308 
			 Empty property relief 1,671 147,923 
			
			 Discretionary relief 1,618 49,909 
			  of which:   
			 Rural rate relief 171 3,565 
		
	
	Data for 2007 and 2008 are not strictly comparable as the rules governing empty property rate relief were changed by the Ratings (Empty Properties) Act 2007 and further subsequent changes.
	Data as at 31 December 2008 are in respect of authorities that would be in existence from 1 April 2009. As part of the reorganisation of the local authorities Penwith DC became part of the Cornwall unitary authority.
	Data for hardship relief and small business rate relief in these years are not available.
	Data are not available at a constituency level and data for earlier years were not collected.

Non-Domestic Rates: Empty Property

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will revise the £15,000 upper limit for empty property rate relief to take account of the number of businesses eligible to claim the relief at its present level.

Rosie Winterton: The current upper limit of £15,000 for empty property rate relief is a temporary limit announced in the pre-Budget report 2008. At the end of the financial year 2009-10 the threshold at which empty property rates become due will automatically revert to £2,200 under the current legislation.
	All tax matters are subject to the pre-Budget report and Budget process and, as with all taxes, the Government continue to keep business rates under review.

Non-Domestic Rates: Empty Property

Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent estimate he has made of the number of businesses in England and Wales with a rateable value of over £15,000 in respect of which empty property rate relief has been awarded.

Rosie Winterton: Details of the number of hereditaments in England with a rateable value of over £15,000 in respect of which empty property rate relief has been awarded as at 31 March 2009, are currently being collected.

Opencast Mining: Planning Permission

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many opencast mining planning applications he has  (a) approved and  (b) refused between July 2008 and July 2009.

John Healey: None.

Ordnance Survey: Manpower

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many full-time equivalent employees are employed by Ordnance Survey.

Shahid Malik: There are 1,356 full-time equivalent employees employed by Ordnance Survey as at 20 July 2009.

Planning Permission

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate was made of the cost of preparation of environmental impact assessments (EIAs) to those submitting planning applications  (a) before and  (b) after introduction of the requirement to produce EIAs.

John Healey: The most recent estimates of the cost in carrying out an environmental impact assessment were set out in the explanatory memorandum to the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2008 (SI No. 2093). This shows an average cost of £30,000-£50,000 per assessment, equivalent to 0.3-0.5 per cent. of the total project costs.
	We do not hold information on costs before Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations first came into force on the 15 July 1988.

Planning Permission

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the timetable is for legislation to allow local authorities to extend the life of planning permissions.

John Healey: The proposed timetable for implementation of this measure is set out in paragraphs 51-52 of the consultation document 'Greater flexibility for planning permissions', which is available at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/planningandbuilding/flexibilitypermissions

Planning Permission

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance he has issued to planning authorities to take account of  (a) travel considerations,  (b) energy conservation and  (c) energy production from natural resources when determining planning applications; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: These concerns are addressed through our national series of planning policy statements and guidance; in particular through Planning Policy Statement 1 and its supplement on climate change, Planning Policy Guidance Note 13 on transport and Planning Policy Statement 22 on renewable energy. More detailed guidance is available on our website at:
	www.communities.gov.uk

Property Development

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance his Department has issued on the definition of the  (a) front and  (b) back of a property for the purposes of the new permitted development rights for small household extensions and works.

John Healey: The terms 'front of a property' and 'back of a property' are not included in part 1 of schedule 2 to the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995. The Department has not issued guidance on the interpretation of these terms. Where terms are properly capable of more than one meaning it is for local planning authorities to take a view in the first instance. Ultimately, statutory interpretation is a matter for the courts.

Regional Planning and Development

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what effect delays in introducing regional spatial strategies will have on his Department's allocation of growth point funding to local authorities in those regions.

John Healey: The Growth Point fund was paid to all local authorities in December 2008 for the period 2009-10, with indicative amounts also announced for 2010-11, subject to variation by the Secretary of State in exceptional circumstances.
	Confirmation of final allocations for 2010-11 will be made following consultation on the savings that are being made to the growth point fund in 2010-11.
	The award of growth point funds is not based on whether the Regional Spatial Strategies (RSS) timetable changes.

Retail Trade: Planning Permission

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the timetable is for  (a) abolition of the needs test and  (b) publication of final planning guidance on out-of-town retail development.

John Healey: On 5 May 2009 we published a consultation draft planning policy statement 4 (PPS4): 'Planning for Prosperous Economies'. This brings together all of the Government's key planning policies relating to the economy in both urban and rural areas into one single document. This new PPS incorporates draft PPS 4: 'Planning for Sustainable Economic Development'; PPG 5: 'Simplified Planning Zones'; PPS 6: 'Planning for Town Centres'; and the economic development policies in PPS 7: 'Sustainable Development in Rural Areas'. Draft PPS4 maintains the proposal to remove the requirement to demonstrate 'need' in respect to planning applications as set out in the PPS6 proposed changes consultation document last year.
	GVA Grimley has also published a 'living draft' town centres practice guidance to support the implementation of town centre policies as set out in draft PPS4, and is informally consulting upon the guidance over the PPS consultation period.
	The consultation period for draft PPS4 ends on 28 July 2009 and we aim to publish the final policy before the end of this year. The practice guidance will be published alongside the final PPS.

Social Rented Housing

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will undertake a privacy impact assessment in relation to the extension of the National Register of Social Housing.

John Healey: The National Register of Social Housing (NROSH) is a central record of each individual unit of social housing compiled from information provided by local authorities and housing associations. It does not collect personal data and does not therefore come under the auspices of the Data Protection Act.
	There are no current plans to extend NROSH.

Social Rented Housing: Low Incomes

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what regional targets have been set for affordable housing  (a) starts and  (b) completions in (i) 2009-10 and (ii) 2010-11; how many such starts and completions are expected to be for (A) intermediate low cost ownership and (B) social rent; on what date the targets were set; and what the previous regional targets had been.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 8 July,  Official Report, column 905W.

Social Rented Housing: Waiting Lists

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the likely effects of giving priority to local people on housing waiting lists on the eligibility for social housing of  (a) New Age Travellers,  (b) Irish Travellers and  (c) Gypsies with no local connection to the area in which they are applying for accommodation;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the likely effects of giving priority to local people on housing waiting lists on the eligibility for social housing of  (a) migrant workers from member states of the EU prior to 2004 and  (b) those with refugee status;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the likely effects of giving priority to local people on housing waiting lists on the eligibility for social housing of non-European economic area nationals with  (a) indefinite leave to remain and  (b) limited leave to remain;
	(4)  what assessment he has made of the likely effects of giving priority to local people on housing waiting lists on the eligibility for social housing of  (a) A8 nationals on the Worker Registration Scheme and  (b) A2 nationals on the Worker Authorisation Scheme.

John Healey: The proposals announced in Building Britain's Future relate to the allocation of social housing. We have no plans to change rules on eligibility to apply for social housing.

Social Rented Housing: Waiting Lists

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  whether an equality impact assessment has been prepared for the proposals for giving priority to local people on housing waiting lists;
	(2)  what assessment has been made of the compatibility with the Human Rights Act 1998 of proposals for giving priority to local people on housing waiting lists;
	(3)  whether he plans to bring forward legislation to allow local authorities to give people with a local association priority on council housing waiting lists.

John Healey: As I informed the House on 7 July, we plan to bring forward before the end of the month revised guidance for local authorities on social housing allocations. Our proposals will give local authorities more flexibility to take into account local housing needs and pressures when determining their allocations policies. The guidance will be issued for consultation, accompanied by an equalities impact assessment and a statement on compatibility with the Human Rights Act.

Supporting People Programme

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people in each client group received a Supporting People grant in each of the last three years.

John Healey: The Supporting People programme is administered at the local level by the relevant administering authority. It is for each authority to decide which services to fund; this is informed by locally identified needs and agreed priorities within their Supporting People strategies. People who are eligible for Supporting People funding tend to use a service, rather than receive a cashable grant.
	Data are collected on the amount of housing related support services available to different client groups (measured in household units). The following tables provide a snapshot of the services available at a particular point in time during each of the last three years, but does not reflect the total number of households who have accessed services during each year. Household unit information is reported to the Department on a quarterly basis, by administering authorities.
	
		
			  Figures for 2006 to 2009 
			   Frail elderly  Generic  Homeless families with support needs  Mentally disordered offenders  Offenders or people at risk of offending  Older people with mental health problems/dementia 
			 2006-07 Q4 32,983 32,435 12,651 277 6,852 998 
			 2007-08 Q4 33,092 36,582 13,101 236 7,747 1,272 
			 2008-09 Q3 35,834 38,263 14,270 236 8,326 1,227 
		
	
	
		
			   Older people with support needs  People with a physical or sensory disability  People with alcohol problems  People with drug problems  People with HIV aids  People with learning disabilities 
			 2006-07 Q4 808,966 12,880 3,068 4,589 654 33,100 
			 2007-08 Q4 808,487 11,876 3,486 4,895 731 31,238 
			 2008-09 Q3 792,168 12,098 3,233 5,435 870 30,910 
		
	
	
		
			   People with mental health problems  Refugees  Rough sleeper  Single homeless with support needs  Teenage parents  Traveller 
			
			 2006-07 Q4 36,396 3,113 2,339 40,989 3,687 1,040 
			 2007-08 Q4 37,280 2,621 2,289 39,038 3,825 1,184 
			 2008-09 Q3(1) 36,495 2,754 2,693 39,952 3,851 1,362 
		
	
	
		
			   Women at risk of domestic violence  Young people at risk  Young people leaving care  Total 
			 2006-07 Q4 8,660 16,596 1,905 1,064,178 
			 2007-08 Q4 9,520 18,610 1,884 1,068,994 
			 2008-09 Q3(1) 10,120 20,454 1,855 1,058,335 
			 (1) Data for Q4 of 2008/09, although collected, are not yet available. The Q3 2008/09 total includes an adjustment of 4,071 relating to some minor reporting inaccuracies from a small number of authorities.  Note: The information in the tables shows the snapshot of household units available at the end of each of the last three years, where available. Data are collected on a quarterly basis and figures can be subject to fluctuations during the year.

Supporting People Programme

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what percentage of the expenditure on Supporting People grants was allocated to each eligible client group in each of the last three years.

John Healey: The Supporting People programme is administered at the local level by the relevant administering authority. It is for each authority to decide which services to fund; this is informed by locally identified need and agreed priorities within their Supporting People Strategies. The following tables set out the amount spent on Supporting People services in England, by primary client group. Retrospective spend information is reported to the Department annually by administering authorities, and is provided for the last three years where complete data are available.
	
		
			  Spend Figures for 2005-08 
			   Frail Elderly  Generic  Homeless Families with Support Needs  Mentally Disordered Offenders  Offenders or People at risk of Offending  Older people with mental health problems/dementia  Older people with support needs 
			 2007-08 27,884,711 80,801,718 46,939,918 2,425,022 49,523,89 4,608,510 275,236,136 
			 Percentage 1.71 4.96 2.88 0.15 3.04 0.28 16.91 
			 2006-07 31,363,644 67,279,119 48,722,386 3,416,097 47,987,270 4,716,665 278,678,273 
			 Percentage 1.91 4.09 2.97 0.21 2.92 0.29 16.96 
			 2005-06 25,708,122 70,073,703 49,472,818 3,438,407 45,795,151 5,308,883 284,148,844 
			 Percentage 1.53 4.17 2.94 0.20 2.72 0.32 16.90 
		
	
	
		
			   People with a Physical or Sensory Disability  People with Alcohol Problems  People with Drug Problems  People with HIV/ AIDS  People with Learning Disabilities  People with Mental Health Problems  Refugees 
			 2007-08 26,656,768 19,436,407 28,287,662 2,288,749 346,626,291 238,698,079 11,105,864 
			 Percentage 1.64 1.19 1.74 0.14 21.30 14.67 0.68 
			 2006-07 29,226,608 18,462,181 24,043,845 2,419,625 367,435,288 239,560,853 14,190,401 
			 Percentage 1.78 1.12 1.46 0.15 22.36 14.58 0.86 
			 2005-06 30,888,012 19,747,486 23,842,280 2,742,667 388,760,777 246,074,554 16,032,747 
			 Percentage 1.84 1.17 1.42 0.16 23.12 14.63 0.95 
		
	
	
		
			   Rough Sleeper  Single Homeless with Support Needs  Teenage Parents  Traveller  Women at Risk of Domestic Violence  Young People at Risk  Young People Leaving Care  Total 
			 2007-08 18,776,088 222,162,774 23,403,241 1,606,075 64,523,484 124,728,170 11,853,858 1,627,573,423 
			 Percentage 1.15 13.65 1.44 0.10 3.96 7.66 0.73 - 
			 2006-07 17,485,753 233,623,677 22,990,005 1,411,993 61,645,319 115,955,181 12,317,463 1,642,961,644 
			 Percentage 1.06 14.22 1.40 0.09 3.75 7.06 0.75 - 
			 2005-06 16,259,386 251,770,808 21,522,476 1,402,909 59,333,258 104,778,449 14,505,536 1,681,607,275 
			 Percentage 0.97 14.97 1.28 0.08 3.53 6.23 0.86 - 
		
	
	2008-09 spend data, although collected, are not yet available.

Sustainable Communities Act 2007

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what resources his Department has provided to local authorities to make proposals under section 2 of the Sustainable Communities Act 2007.

Shahid Malik: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 The additional costs falling on local authorities as a result of their responsibilities under section 2 of the Sustainable Communities Act 2007 were taken into account in the spending plans announced as part of the comprehensive spending review 2007. The Act provides a valuable opportunity for local authorities to make proposals which they consider, with their local communities, would contribute to promoting sustainability of local communities. In October 2008, the Secretary of State invited local authorities to submit such proposals, via the Local Government Association by 31 July 2009.

Sustainable Communities Act 2007

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what provisions of the Sustainable Communities Act 2007 have been taken into account in planning guidance issued to planning authorities; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The Sustainable Communities Act received Royal Assent in October 2007 and its implementation is part of the drive to involve citizens and communities in making proposals that will promote the sustainability of their area, that need central Government to act to enable them to do so.
	CLG has produced a plain English guide to the Act which is available on our website. In October 2008 the Secretary of State invited local authorities to submit proposals via the Local Government Association (LGA), which we have appointed as 'the selector'. Proposals must reach the LGA by 31 July 2009.

Tenancy Deposit Scheme

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what key performance indicators are used by his Department to measure the performance of the Deposit Protection Service; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will place in the Library a copy of the Deposit Protection Service's most recent monthly report on its performance;
	(3)  what rating was applied to the Deposit Protection Service in relation to each of its key performance indicators in each of the last six months.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 15 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 486-88W.

Tenancy Deposit Scheme

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the budget of the Deposit Protection Service is for  (a) 2009-10 and  (b) 2010-11.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 488W.

Tenancy Deposit Scheme

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many  (a) landlords and  (b) lettings agents were registered with the Deposit Protection Service in each month since the service was commenced.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 488W.

Travelling People: Caravan Sites

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether authorised Traveller camps may be built on green belt land.

John Healey: There is a presumption against inappropriate development on green belt land. New Traveller sites in the green belt are inappropriate development, as defined in planning policy guidance note 2: green belts. An application for inappropriate development will be acceptable in planning terms only if the benefits of the development would be greater than the harms, and if very special circumstances exist to justify a grant of permission.

Travelling People: Caravan Sites

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 8 June 2009,  Official Report, column 756W, on Travelling people: caravan sites, if he will publish the figures provided for each  (a) Government Office region and  (b) local authority area.

Shahid Malik: Information on the number of Gypsy and Traveller caravans, provided by Government Office region and by local authority area, has already been published in the bi-annual publication of the Count of Gypsy and Traveller Caravans. Information from these publications, covering the Counts between 19 January 2000 and 19 July 2006, has been made available to the Library of the House.
	Additionally, data from the last five Counts which was published on 12 May 2009, include data on the Counts since 18 January 2007. This Count is available on the website of Communities and Local Government at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/statistics/xls/1228795.xls

Tree Preservation Orders: Thundersley Common

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many tree protection orders have been granted for trees on Thundersley Common in the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The Department for Communities and Local Government does not hold this information, as responsibility for making and administering Tree Preservation Orders rests with the relevant local authority; in this case Castle Point borough council.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Adult Education: Finance

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 17 March 2009,  Official Report, column 1065W, on adult education, how much was spent on evaluating the Impact of Skills for Life Learning initiative under each budgetary heading.

Kevin Brennan: The Department and its predecessor has spent, in total to date, £1,853,097 on the evaluation of the Impact of Skills for Life Learning initiative.
	This evaluation has been split over two contracts. The following table shows the total payments by operation year made to each contractor.
	
		
			  Breakdown of total payments by operational year to contractors for research into the Impact of Skills for Life Learning 
			  Contractor  Contract   Amount paid (£) 
			 BMRB International Ltd. 1 2002/03 904,728 
			   2003/04 306,745 
			   2004/05 288,624 
			   2005/06 55,000 
			 Sub total   1,555,097 
			 
			 National Institute of Economic and Social Research 2 2006/07 258,000 
			   2007/08 40,000 
			 Sub total   298,000 
			 Grand total   1,853,097

Adult Education: Suffolk

Richard Spring: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many adults have  (a) enrolled in adult and community learning programmes and  (b) participated in further education in Suffolk in each year since 1997.

Kevin Brennan: The table shows the number of LSC funded adult learners participating in adult and community learning (ACL) and participating in further education provision in Suffolk, from 2002/03 to 2007/08. Information prior to 2002/03 is not available on a consistent basis. ACL providers were not required to return data to the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) prior to 2003/04-therefore ACL data for 2002/03 are not available.
	
		
			  Adult participation in ACL and FE provision in Suffolk local authority, 2002/03 to 2007/08 
			   Adult and community learning  Further education provision 
			 2002/03 n/a 31,500 
			 2003/04 15,200 32,500 
			 2004/05 14,000 29,500 
			 2005/06 12,900 24,000 
			 2006/07 8,500 16,800 
			 2007/08 9,000 17,100 
			  Notes: 1. Area is based on home postcode of learner. 2. Figures for local authority have been rounded to the nearest hundred.  3. FE provision includes general further education colleges including tertiary, sixth form colleges, special college-agricultural and horticultural colleges and art and Design colleges, specialist colleges and external institutions.  Source: ACL and FE ILR 
		
	
	Over the past few years we have focused public funding away from a high number of short, and poor quality courses towards longer and more valuable courses providing adults with the skills for employment and further progression in learning. This resulted in the reduction in the overall number of LSC funded adult learners between 2004/05 and 2006/07, but has led to significant increases in Skills for Life literacy and numeracy and full level 2 qualification achievements.

Adult Learning Grant

David Laws: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people in each age group received an adult learning grant in the latest year for which figures are available.

Kevin Brennan: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) for England administers the adult learning grant (ALG) nationally on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The ALG is specifically aimed at economically active adults who do not have at least a level 2 qualification but are working. Cost can often be a barrier to learning for those on low incomes and ALG is designed to help meet those additional costs.
	To date in 2008/09 29,794 individuals have received an ALG payment. This can be broken down into the following age ranges:
	
		
			  Age range  ALGs awarded and paid 
			 19-25 25,417 
			 26-30 1,550 
			 31+ 2,827 
			 Total 29,794

Advantage West Midlands: Finance

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding his Department allocated to Advantage West Midlands in each of the last five years; and what funding his Department will provide to Advantage West Midlands in each future year for which provision has been made.

Rosie Winterton: The budget allocations made to Advantage West Midlands (AWM) in the last five years are shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Budget allocations (£ million) 
			 2008-09 296 
			 2007-08 297 
			 2006-07 290 
			 2005-06 289 
			 2004-05 237 
		
	
	AWM's budget allocation for 2009-10 is £295 million, and they have indicative allocations for 2010-11 of £212 million.

Apprentices

Dai Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department plans to take to increase the number of apprenticeships.

Kevin Brennan: We are taking a wide range of steps to encourage more people to take up apprenticeships and to encourage more employers to offer high quality places. Government are already committed to increasing spending on apprentices in 2009-10 to over £1 billion. At a time of economic downturn it is vital that we continue to invest in people and their skills. Earlier this year, the Prime Minister announced a £140 million package for 35,000 additional apprenticeship places, of which at least 21,000 will be in the public sector.
	In May we announced an £11 million investment to provide 3,000 additional apprenticeship places for young people. This new approach will see large employers expanding existing apprenticeship programmes and allow small businesses to benefit from the expertise of companies which have been training apprentices for some time. We also announced a £7 million fund for up to 10 new apprenticeship training agencies this year, with the potential to deliver up to 15,000 apprenticeship places per year by 2014-15. The funding will also be available to help develop and expand new or existing group training associations, which can help attract new and hard to reach employers and new individuals to become apprentices.
	We have now established the new national apprenticeship service to provide a single point of contact for employers and apprentices. A key part of this service is the new online system for apprenticeship vacancy matching, which is already proving successful in bringing together employers and prospective apprentices.
	We are also putting in place procedures to use the public procurement process to encourage companies, including small and medium-sized enterprises, with access to Government-funded contracts to offer apprenticeships. The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills and the Office of Government Commerce jointly published new guidance in April this year (promoting skills through public procurement) on how to embed skills and training in procurements.
	We want apprenticeships to be a mainstream option for young people and are taking forward a range of measures, as part of our 16-18 apprenticeships action plan, to increase the number of apprenticeships available for 16-18 year-olds. The Children, Skills and Learning Bill, includes provisions to ensure that an apprenticeship place is available for all suitably qualified young people by 2013.

Apprentices

Stephen Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much he expects his Department to spend on level four apprenticeships in each of the next five years.

Kevin Brennan: The budget for apprenticeships is not separated according to the level of the framework undertaken. The total budget available for apprenticeships for 2009-10 is £1,098 million.
	The budget for 2010-11 has not yet been agreed but will be published towards the end of this calendar year, and budgets for the following years will be agreed in line with our commitment to ensure that an apprenticeship place is available for all qualified young people by 2013. Over time, as we encourage the development of more level four apprenticeship frameworks, we would expect that more people will progress from level three apprenticeships to develop these higher level skills.

Apprentices

Stephen Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many level four apprenticeships have been  (a) started and  (b) completed in each year since 2001.

Kevin Brennan: The first level four apprenticeship starts were in 2006-07, when these higher level frameworks were introduced. In 2006-07, there were 90 level four apprenticeship starts, with 60 in 2007-08, the latest full year for which we have data. Due to the length of these programmes, as of 2007-08, there are no recorded completions of level four apprenticeships.

Apprentices

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people aged between 16 and 24 years started an apprenticeship in each region in the period  (a) September 2007 to July 2008 and  (b) September 2008 to July 2009.

Kevin Brennan: Table 1 shows the number of apprenticeship starts for 16 to 24-year-olds, by region. Data are shown for the 2007/08 academic year (1 August to 31 July), and the first nine months of the 2008/09 year (1 August to 30 April). Apprenticeship starts for the whole of the 2008/09 academic year are due to be published later in 2009 in a statistical first release (SFR)-the next post-16 education and skills SFR is due to be published in October 2009.
	
		
			  Table 1: Apprenticeship starts, 16 to 24-year-olds 
			  Government office region  2007/08 (1 August to 31 July)  2008/09 (1 August to 30 April), part-year, provisional 
			 East Midlands 19,300 14,200 
			 East of England 18,800 13,100 
			 London 12,100 9,700 
			 North East 13,700 10,300 
			 North West 32,800 23,700 
			 South East 28,100 21,700 
			 South West 22,400 17,800 
			 West Midlands 21,600 16,900 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 25,800 20,300 
			 Other 2,900 2,300 
			 Grand total 197,600 149,900 
			  Notes: 1. Data have been rounded to the nearest hundred, and may not sum to totals due to rounding. 2. Region is based on learner's home postcode. 3. 'Other' includes unknown postcodes, and those outside of England. 4. The data shown include a small number of learners below 16 years of age. 5. Age is calculated based on age at start of the programme.

Apprentices

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people went on to higher education after completing an apprenticeship in each year since 1997.

Kevin Brennan: Information on the destinations of apprenticeships is not routinely collected in administrative data.
	However, there are other sources of information which give an indication of the progression of apprenticeship completers to higher education. One such source is a report published by the Higher Education Funding Council for England in May 2009, Pathways to Higher Education:
	http://www.hefce.ac.uk/pubs/hefce/2009/09_17/.
	The report states that 5 per cent. of those who completed an apprenticeship in 2002/03 had progressed to some form of higher education by 2006/07 (or by 2005/06 for those progressing to work-based HE).
	A greater proportion of apprentices who completed an advanced (level 3) programme progressed to HE: 6 per cent. compared to 4 per cent. of those who completed a level 2 apprenticeship.
	The analysis excluded a minority of apprenticeship completers, who are discussed in the report.
	We do want to see much greater progression from apprenticeships into higher education. That is why in World Class Apprenticeships the Government set out their commitment to apprenticeships being a route to higher education where desired, and we have recently consulted on our proposal that all advanced apprenticeships should be accredited with UCAS tariff points.

Apprentices

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people aged  (a) between 16 and 24 years and  (b) 25 years and over stopped claiming jobseeker's allowance in order to start an apprenticeship in each year since 1997.

Kevin Brennan: My Department, the Department for Work and Pensions and Jobcentre Plus do not currently hold data on the number of jobseeker's allowance claimants leaving the benefit to start an apprenticeship.
	At present, DWP do not hold information regarding specific training destinations of jobseeker's allowance leavers. The Integrated Employment and Skills Programme Unit is currently working to link data sets held by DWP and BIS which will allow us to identify the specific training destinations of jobseeker's allowance claimants in the future.
	The Integrated Employment and Skills Service is being developed jointly by DWP and BIS to implement the Government's response to the Leitch Review. The new integrated system will allow everyone to easily access information, advice and guidance to help them progress in their careers and be flexible and responsive to the different demands of individuals and employers.

Apprentices

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people aged between 16 and 24 years started an apprenticeship in  (a) construction,  (b) manufacturing,  (c) health and beauty,  (d) engineering, electrician and building services and  (e) other sectors in the period (i) September 2007 to July 2008 and (ii) September 2008 to July 2009.

Kevin Brennan: Tables 1 and 2 show the number of apprenticeship starts for 16 to 24-year-olds by all frameworks for the 2007/08 academic year (1 August to 31 July), and the first nine months of the 2008/09 year (1 August to 30 April), respectively. Apprenticeship starts for the whole of the 2008/09 academic year are due to be published later in 2009 in a statistical first release (SFR)-the next post-16 education and skills SFR is due to be published in October 2009.
	Copies of these tables have been provided and the relevant data will be placed in the Library.

Apprentices

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many and what percentage of apprentices were unemployed 12 months after completing their apprenticeship in each year since 1997.

Kevin Brennan: An apprenticeship is a work-based programme and an apprentice must have a job or a work placement as a condition of completing their apprenticeship framework. Many will already be in permanent employment prior to the end of their apprenticeship.
	Information on the destination of apprentices upon completion of their apprenticeship is not readily available. This type of information will in future be collected using the Framework for Excellence learner destination survey with the first results for all further education colleges and work based learning providers available later in 2009. The survey will be conducted nine months after the end of the academic year and so will not relate exactly to 12 months after the completion of the apprenticeship.

Apprentices

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 25 June 2009,  Official Report, column 1124W, on apprentices, what the most recent figures are for the number of apprenticeship vacancies  (a) advertised and  (b) filled through the National Apprenticeship Service online vacancy matching system.

Kevin Brennan: At the end of June 2009, 4,372 vacancies were live on the National Apprenticeship Service online vacancy matching system. A total of 17,588 vacancies have been posted since 12 January 2009 when the system went live. There have been 616 confirmed cases of successful offers made as a result of the service, and a further 2,508 vacancies have current applications.

Apprentices

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 182W, on apprentices, whether all existing learners who have started their training since 1 April 2009 on  (a) apprenticeship programmes and  (b) Train to Gain courses funded by the Learning and Skills Council will be funded to complete their existing training at the agreed rates.

Kevin Brennan: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) is responsible for agreeing with each provider the scope for continued recruitment for 2008/09 academic year on apprenticeship programmes and Train to Gain courses.
	Where learners start within the 2008/09 academic year the funding rates will continue at the same level for the remainder of the academic year.
	For the 2009/10 academic year, funding rates in respect of apprenticeship programmes (for those aged 19 or over) and Train to Gain courses will increase by 1.5 per cent. compared with 2008/09 academic year. The exception to this is the funding rate for learners aged 25 or over starting an apprenticeship programme in 2009/10 academic year. For these learners the funding rate will be 90 per cent. of the uplifted rate.

Apprentices: Greater London

Karen Buck: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprenticeships were  (a) started and  (b) completed in each London local authority area in (i) 1997 and (ii) 2007-08.

Kevin Brennan: Tables 1 and 2 show the number of apprenticeship starts and completions in each London local authority from 2003/04, the earliest year for which we have comparable data.
	
		
			  Table 1: Apprenticeship starts 
			  Region  Local authority  2003/04  2004/05  2005/06  2006/07  2007/08 
			 Inner London Camden 100 200 100 200 200 
			  City of London - - - - - 
			  Hackney 300 300 200 200 300 
			  Hammersmith and Fulham 200 200 200 200 200 
			  Haringey 200 200 200 200 300 
			  Islington 200 300 200 200 200 
			  Kensington and Chelsea 100 100 100 100 100 
			  Lambeth 400 400 300 300 400 
			  Lewisham 400 400 400 400 500 
			  Newham 500 500 400 300 600 
			  Southwark 300 400 300 300 400 
			  Tower Hamlets 500 500 400 300 500 
			  Wandsworth 300 300 300 200 300 
			  Westminster 200 200 300 200 300 
			  Total 3,700 4,000 3,400 3,200 4,200 
			
			
			 Outer London Barking and Dagenham 400 400 400 300 500 
			  Barnet 400 400 300 300 400 
			  Bexley 600 700 600 700 800 
			  Brent 300 400 300 300 400 
			  Bromley 600 600 500 600 800 
			  Croydon 700 700 700 600 900 
			  Ealing 400 400 300 400 500 
			  Enfield 500 500 400 400 500 
			  Greenwich 400 500 500 400 500 
			  Harrow 300 300 300 300 300 
			  Havering 600 600 600 600 800 
			  Hillingdon 600 600 500 600 800 
			  Hounslow 400 400 400 500 600 
			  Kingston upon Thames 300 200 200 200 300 
			  Merton 300 300 300 300 300 
			  Redbridge 300 400 300 300 500 
			  Richmond upon Thames 200 200 200 200 200 
			  Sutton 500 500 500 400 600 
			  Waltham Forest 400 500 400 400 500 
			  Total 8,200 8,300 7,600 7,900 10,300 
			 Inner and outer London Total 11,900 12,400 11,000 11,100 14,500 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Apprenticeship completions 
			  Region  Local authority  2003/04  2004/05  2005/06  2006/07  2007/08 
			 Inner London Camden - - 100 100 100 
			  City of London - - - - - 
			  Hackney - 100 100 100 100 
			  Hammersmith and Fulham - 100 100 100 100 
			  Haringey - - 100 100 100 
			  Islington - - 100 100 100 
			  Kensington and Chelsea - - - 100 100 
			  Lambeth - 100 100 100 100 
			  Lewisham 100 100 200 200 200 
			  Newham 100 100 200 200 200 
			  Southwark - 100 100 200 200 
			  Tower Hamlets 100 100 200 100 200 
			  Wandsworth - 100 100 100 100 
			  Westminster 100 100 100 200 100 
			  Total 500 800 1,500 1,700 1,700 
			
			 Outer London Barking and Dagenham 100 100 200 200 200 
			  Barnet 100 100 200 200 200 
			  Bexley 100 200 300 400 400 
			  Brent - 100 100 100 100 
			  Bromley 100 200 300 300 300 
			  Croydon 100 200 300 400 300 
			  Ealing 100 100 200 200 200 
			  Enfield 100 100 200 200 200 
			  Greenwich 100 100 200 300 300 
			  Harrow 100 100 100 100 200 
			  Havering 100 200 300 400 400 
			  Hillingdon 100 200 300 400 400 
			  Hounslow 100 100 200 300 200 
			  Kingston upon Thames 100 100 100 100 100 
			  Merton 100 100 200 100 200 
			  Redbridge 100 100 200 200 200 
			  Richmond upon Thames 100 100 100 100 100 
			  Sutton 100 200 200 300 200 
			  Waltham Forest 100 100 200 300 200 
			  Total 1,500 2,400 3,800 4,600 4,500 
			 Inner and outer London Total 2,100 3,200 5,300 6,200 6,200 
			  Notes: 1. Area is based on home postcode of learner. 2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred and may not sum to total due to rounding. 3. '-' Represents a figure of less than 50.  Source: WBL 1LR 
		
	
	The Government are committed to rebuilding apprenticeships. Since 1997 we have witnessed a renaissance in apprenticeships from a low point of 65,000 to a record 225,000 apprenticeship starts in 2007/08. Completion rates are also at a record high with 64 per cent. successfully completing an apprenticeship-up from 37 per cent. in 2004/05.

Apprentices: Public Sector

Fraser Kemp: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many public sector apprenticeships have been started in  (a) Sunderland and  (b) England since 2005.

Kevin Brennan: We do not hold centrally data on the number of apprentices employed within the public sector. The Government are committed to developing and expanding apprenticeships in the public sector and earlier this year Cabinet colleagues announced plans for the expansion of the apprenticeships scheme across the public sector. We announced a £140 million package to deliver 35,000 extra places this year, of which, 21,000 would be in the public sector.
	From 1 August 2009, a key employer field in individual learner records (ILR) will be compulsory for the first time. This will allow us to estimate the number of public sector apprentices more accurately.

Apprentices: Redundancy

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what information his Department holds on the number of apprenticeships interrupted by redundancy in the last 12 month period for which figures are available.

Kevin Brennan: We do not currently hold data centrally about the total number of apprentices made redundant. Working with Construction Skills and the National Apprenticeship Service we have established a matching service to help apprentices in the construction sector at risk of redundancy to find alternative employment and to complete their apprenticeship. We do have some information on redundancies in the construction sector where 665 redundant apprentices have been subsequently re-employed. We are continuing to help 775 redundant apprentices in the construction sector.

Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Bill

John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what evidence was provided to the Better Regulation Executive by his Department in relation to the statement that, Costs to existing recognised Awarding Bodies are expected to be neutral, on average, in the Impact Assessment of the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Bill relating to the creation of the awarding body regulator, Ofqual and the QCDA.

Ian Lucas: The impact assessment which accompanied the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Bill was prepared and published by the Department for Children, Schools and Families. The forecast benefits, set-up and steady state costs associated with this regulation are set out in that impact assessment. These are based are a range of cost and break-even scenarios.

British Telecom

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on what dates members of BT's board have met  (a) Ministers and  (b) officials in his Department in the last six months.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 8 July 2009
	In the last six months, members of BT's board have had five meetings with Ministers, and a further six meetings with BIS officials only. The dates for these meetings are:
	 (a) Ministers
	23 January
	26 February
	9 March
	14 April
	1 July
	 (b) Officials only
	21 January
	11 February
	17 February
	25 March
	11 May
	6 July
	Members of BT's board will also have been present at a number of wider meetings attended by Ministers and officials.

Broadband

Don Foster: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of jobs to be created through  (a) the roll-out of universal broadband access to 2012 and  (b) the roll-out of next generation broadband services.

Patrick McFadden: This Department has not made any estimates of the number of jobs to be created through  (a) the roll-out of universal broadband access to 2012 and  (b) the roll-out of next generation. However, a recent report by the Information, Technology and Innovation Foundation suggested that a nominal £5 billion investment in broadband networks infrastructure would generate 280,000 jobs.

Broadband: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department and its predecessors have taken to ensure competition among high-speed broadband providers in Essex in the last three years.

Patrick McFadden: My Department has made no steps to ensure competitiveness among high speed broadband providers specifically in Essex. However, through Ofcom, the government has ensured that the majority of consumers across the country benefit from competition in the broadband market by ensuring wholesale access to the BT Openreach network, and the local loop unbundling of BT exchange.

Broadband: Finance

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what funding his Department has allocated to facilitate universal provision of high-speed broadband in 2009-10; and from which budget.

Patrick McFadden: The Digital Britain Report set out our plans for a Universal Service Commitment in relation to broadband. This will ensure virtually every household will be able to access a broadband line capable of delivering at least two megabits per second. This will be funded, by approximately £200 million, drawn from a combination of the emerging under spend on the Digital Switchover Help Scheme (from the TV licence fee) and the £750 million BIS Strategic Investment Fund announced in the recent Budget to support advanced industrial projects of strategic importance. The finer details of how funding for this will be done year on year to 2012 are yet to be determined.
	The Digital Britain Report also proposed that a Next Generation Fund should be created to encourage investment in high speed broadband in those parts of the UK where commercial investment will not reach. This would come from a small supplement of 50 pence per month on fixed telephone lines, which represents a fair and sensible national investment to ensure that the overwhelming majority of the country can get access to next generation, high speed, broadband.

Broadband: Finance

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will exempt  (a) elderly people and  (b) vulnerable groups from liability for payment of the Next Generation Fund supplement; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 9 July 2009
	 Under existing rules any individual in receipt of income support, income-based jobseeker's allowance, pensions credit (guaranteed credit) or employment and support allowance (income related) is entitled to social telephony. As set out in the Digital Britain White Paper published on 16 June 2009 the Government do not wish to see a widening digital divide. Therefore the Government expect that individuals who are in receipt of social telephony packages would also be exempt from the broadband levy to fund the deployment of next generation networks.

Broadband: Kent

Michael Fallon: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking in conjunction with BT to upgrade the BT broadband service in the Chartwell and Pootings area of West Kent.

Patrick McFadden: I am not in a position to comment on BT's commercial plans. In the Budget on 22 April we confirmed the Government's commitment to delivering a Universal Service for broadband at a speed of 2 megabits per second, by no later than 2012. In the Digital Britain White Paper, published on 16 June, we set out our plan of how this Universal Service Commitment will be achieved.

Broadband: Merseyside

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many households in  (a) Crosby and  (b) Merseyside had access to high-speed broadband services in each year since 1997.

Patrick McFadden: The matter raised is the responsibility of the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom), which is accountable to Parliament rather than Ministers. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of Ofcom to reply directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the chief executive's letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Broadband: Merseyside

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding his Department has allocated for expansion of high-speed broadband usage in  (a) Crosby and  (b) Merseyside since 1997.

Patrick McFadden: This Department has not allocated central funding for expansion of high-speed broadband usage in  (a) Crosby and  (b) Merseyside since 1997.
	As my hon. Friend may already be aware, in the Budget on 22 April the Chancellor confirmed the Government's commitment to delivering a universal service for broadband at a speed of 2 megabits per second, by no later than 2012. In the recently published Digital Britain report, we have set out in greater detail our plan of how the universal service commitment might work.

Broadband: Rural Areas

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what range of broadband speeds the Universal Service Commitment will deliver to rural areas by 2012.

Patrick McFadden: The Digital Britain Report, published on 16 June outlined a minimum broadband speed of 2 megabits per second for virtually everyone by 2012 under the Government's Universal Service Commitment (USC). Greater speeds may be achieved depending on the technology used to meet the USC and the Report estimated that approximately 1.5 million households may benefit from Next Generation broadband speeds as a result.

Building Schools for the Future Programme

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions the Secretary of State has had with the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on the transfer of some sixth form college capital projects to the Building Schools for the Future programme.

Kevin Brennan: The Government's intention to bring sixth form colleges within the scope of Building Schools for the Future programme was announced in the White Paper Raising Expectations: enabling the system to deliver (Cm7348), which was published in March 2008. That was a joint publication by the Secretaries of State for Children, Schools and Families and Innovation, Universities and Skills. The DCSF continues to work closely with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on matters involving capital investment. It remains our position that we will bring sixth form colleges within the scope of the BSF programme and we will make the details clear as soon as we are able.

Business: Advisory Services

John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress has been made in providing face-to-face advisory sessions on business advice open days as referred to in the Government's response to the Anderson Review of Good Guidance.

Ian Lucas: BIS, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, ACAS and the Health and Safety Executive have established a working group to take forward recommendations on improvements to HMRC's Business Advice Open Days (to be rolled out from autumn 2009). In the interim, the Better Regulation Executive are represented at the five Business Advice Open Days over the summer and will provide information on employment law guidance with the participation of BIS colleagues where possible.

Business: Credit

Don Touhig: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of levels of access to credit for small businesses.

Rosie Winterton: BIS makes regular assessments on the availability of credit to small businesses by monitoring statistics produced by the British Bankers Association (BBA) and the Bank of England, as well as monitoring findings from a large number of regular surveys by business representative bodies. In addition, BIS collects data monthly from the five main banks on their lending activity to small and medium-sized enterprises. BIS also carries out regular surveys of businesses examining a wide range of issues including access to finance.
	From these data sources, it is apparent that the stock of bank lending has increased compared to 2007 and 2008. For instance, the BBA has reported that the stock of bank lending to SMEs has increased in the first five months of 2009 and was about 4 per cent. higher in May 2009 than a year ago. However, there has been a decline in new bank lending to SMEs. This is due to a reduction in the demand for finance with declining loans and overdraft applications, as well as a decline in approval rates reflecting tighter credit conditions.
	Approval rates (approvals of new borrowing as a ratio to applications) have fallen compared to the corresponding months in 2007. Likewise, the BIS SME Barometer shows that although the majority of SMEs can obtain the finance they need, there has been a reduction in the proportion of businesses being able to raise finance. In February 2009, 60 per cent. of SME employers obtained some finance from the first source they approached. In comparison, the Annual Small Business Survey 2007-08 shows 84 per cent. of SME employers obtained some finance from the first source approached. Banks attribute the fall in approval rates to a decline in the quality of applications as well as a tightening in credit availability.
	There has been a reduction in the demand for finance, as measured by the number of loans and overdrafts applications compared to corresponding months in 2007. This is especially pronounced for SMEs with turnover of less than £l million. It is likely that businesses have become more cautious and are delaying capital investment.
	Although access to finance is vital for supporting businesses during the current difficult economic conditions, only a minority of businesses seek finance. The Business Barometer shows 21 per cent. of SME employers sought finance in the last six months. Furthermore, the majority of SMEs (39 per cent.) report the economy as the main barrier to the success of the business, compared to only 4 per cent. who report access to finance as the main barrier.

Business: EC Law

Philip Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment his Department has made of the cost to UK businesses of the implementation of EU regulations.

Ian Lucas: It is very difficult to provide precise figures for the cost to UK businesses of the implementation of legislation that stems from the European Union.
	The administrative burdens measurement exercise carried out by the Government in 2006 put the proportion of administrative burdens stemming from the EU at approximately 1/3 of the annual total of £13.2 billion.

Business: Enfield

Joan Ryan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many loans have been granted under the Small Business Loan Guarantee Scheme to small and medium-sized businesses in  (a) the London Borough of Enfield and  (b) Enfield North constituency since the establishment of the scheme.

Rosie Winterton: The Enterprise Finance Guarantee was launched on 14 January. Information for the London borough of Enfield and Enfield North is as follows:
	
		
			  London borough of Enfield 
			   Number 
			 Loans offered 14 
			 Loans drawn 9 
		
	
	
		
			   Value (£ million) 
			 Loans offered 1.37 
			 Loans drawn 0.66 
		
	
	
		
			  Enfield  North 
			   Number 
			 Loans offered 5 
			 Loans drawn 3 
		
	
	
		
			   Value (£ million) 
			 Loans offered 0.87 
			 Loans drawn 0.32

Business: Government Assistance

Anne Main: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  how much lending has been guaranteed under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme;
	(2)  how many businesses have received assistance under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme.

Rosie Winterton: Since its launch on 14 January the Enterprise Finance Guarantee has over £596 million of eligible applications from 5,305 firms that have been granted, are being processed or assessed. 3,867 businesses have been offered loans totalling £381.23 million.

Business: Government Assistance

Mark Hoban: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the implications for lenders under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme of the default rate exceeding 13 per cent. of the whole amount guaranteed.

Rosie Winterton: To date, there is no evidence to suggest that lenders are being inhibited in their use of the Enterprise Finance Guarantee because of the cap of 13 per cent., which is a requirement of EU state aid rules. It is important to remember that the Enterprise Finance Guarantee is aimed at helping banks lend to fundamentally viable businesses. We therefore do not expect an overall portfolio default rate of 13 per cent. to restrict the ability of banks to lend appropriately under the guarantee.

Business: Government Assistance

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many loans have been granted under the Small Business Loan Guarantee Scheme to small and medium-sized businesses in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point since the inception of that scheme.

Rosie Winterton: As follows are the numbers and value of loans secured under the enterprise finance guarantee for Essex and Castle Point since it was launched on 14 January 2009:
	
		
			   Essex  Castle Point 
			 Number of loans offered 126 10 
			 Value of loans offered (£ million) 11.4 1.06 
			 Number of loans drawn 87 6 
			 Value of loans drawn (£ million) 8.74 0.9

Business: Government Assistance

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what further assistance he plans to provide to  (a) small businesses,  (b) medium-sized businesses and  (c) large businesses in Essex in the next 12 months; what recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on this issue; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The East of England Development Agency's business support services, which operate at a regional level, are all available to businesses in Essex. All business support is accessible through Business Link East. EEDA's Business Map,
	www.bizmapeast.co.uk
	is designed to help businesses navigate the network of publicly funded business support.
	Key business support services that will assist businesses in the region during the next 12 months are as follows:
	The EEDA-funded regional Business Link service provides access to a comprehensive range of independent, impartial advice to would-be entrepreneurs, start-ups and businesses across the region. Within Essex, Business Link have three Partnership Directors overseeing activity specifically dedicated to supporting Essex businesses.
	EEDA along with UK Trade and Investment funds East of England International (EEI) to offer an international trade and inward investment service, which provides the support to local businesses to grow internationally or export and to overseas-owned companies locating in the region
	EEDA's own specialist business support services include:
	Take ITon - assisting businesses to improve use of IT, focused on helping small and medium-sized enterprises save costs through IT.
	Manufacturing Advisory Service East (MAS-East) - assisting businesses to introduce new manufacturing, innovation and design tools.
	Enterprising Women - specialist business support for women entrepreneurs.
	Inspiring Women - supporting economically inactive women to find employment or consider self-employment.
	Business Finance - EEDA manages a number of business finance schemes designed to help businesses in the region start up and grow, e.g.:
	Proof of Concept - grants up to £20,000 to define and quantify the market opportunity for a business
	Grants for Research and Development - grants from £5,000 to £250,000 to help businesses carry out research and development work
	Grant for Business Investment - grants from £10,000 to £2 million to establish, expand, diversify and modernise your business.
	Small Loans for Business - loans of £500 to £50,000 for start-ups, SMEs and social enterprises
	EEDA Regional Loan (Transition) - short-term loans of £100,000 to £150,000 for businesses turning over more than £1 million
	EEDA Regional Loan (Growth) - long-term loans of £50,000 to £200,000 for growth businesses.
	Innovation Vouchers - designed to help businesses purchase academic expertise from the region's universities to support innovation and business improvement.
	Understanding Finance for Business - a training course to help to make SME businesses investment-ready and be signposted to relevant sources of funding
	Beyond 2010 - in the next 12 months, EEDA will fund a £6.2 million project to work alongside Train to Gain to ensure that businesses can get the skills training that they need. This includes £2.2 million to support a regional Response to Redundancy programme which provides advice, guidance and re-training opportunities to individuals facing redundancy. The programme is linked to the Jobcentre Plus Rapid Response Service.
	Resource Efficiency East - This scheme helps businesses to improve their competitiveness by using resources more efficiently. The project aims to save the region's SMEs £12m a year, and cut water consumption by 765,000 cubic metres, landfill by 81,000 tonnes and carbon dioxide emissions by 40,000 tonnes.
	At an national level, there are also:
	the Enterprise Finance Guarantee is a temporary loan guarantee scheme which enables bank lending to SMEs with a turnover of up to £25 million. The Government have set aside £1.3 billion to guarantee banks loans to SMEs who have been deemed viable but have little or no security. It is due to end in March 2010 and an announcement about what will replace EFG will be made in due course
	the Capital for Enterprise Fund is a £75 million equity scheme. Decisions on investments are made by the appointed fund managers and are based on the merits of the proposal and the outcome of the resulting due diligence, and not on the location of the business.

Business: Government Assistance

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in Castle Point have  (a) applied for and  (b) received assistance from the (i) Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme and (ii) Capital for Enterprise Fund in 2009; and how much has been provided to businesses in Castle Point under each scheme.

Rosie Winterton: The number and value of loans offered and drawn under the enterprise finance guarantee for Castle Point since it was launched on 14 January 2009:
	
		
			   Enterprise finance guarantee 
			 Number of loans offered 10 
			 Value of loans offered (£ million) 1.06 
			 Number of loans drawn 6 
			 Value of loans drawn (£ million) 0.90 
		
	
	The Department only records information on a regional basis for the capital for enterprise fund and the information for the south-east is as follows:
	
		
			   South-east 
			 Number of loans under consideration 11 
			 Value of loans under consideration 18.3 
			 Number of loans offered 2 
			 Value of loans offered 3.2 
			 Number of offer terms agreed 1 
			 Value of offer terms agreed 2

Business: Government Assistance

Michael Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent steps his Department has taken to assist  (a) small,  (b) medium-sized and  (c) large businesses in Hemel Hempstead; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: Business Link, which is funded by East of England Development Agency (EEDA), provides access to independent and impartial business advice. Business Link engaged with 1,439 companies in Hemel Hempstead (parliamentary constituency) during 2008-09 out of 19,460 for the county of Hertfordshire.
	EEDA delivers a range of specialist business support services across the East of England accessible through Business Link East. All these services are available to businesses in Hemel Hempstead:
	EEDA along with UK Trade and Investment funds East of England International (EEI) to offer an international trade and inward investment service for businesses in the region.
	EEDA's Take ITon campaign assists businesses to improve use of IT, focused on helping small and medium-sized enterprises save costs through IT.
	Assistance for businesses to introduce new manufacturing, innovation and design tools through Manufacturing Advisory Service East (MAS-East).
	EEDA's specialist business support for women entrepreneurs, Enterprising Women, offers networking opportunities, a bank of mentors, promotional opportunities and a network of women ambassadors.
	Support for economically inactive women; Inspiring Women assists them to find employment or consider self-employment as a career option.
	EEDA manages a number of business finance schemes designed to help businesses in the region start up and grow. These include grants for Proof of Concept and Research and Developments, small loans for start-ups, SMEs and social enterprises as well as short and long-term larger loans.
	EEDA's understanding finance for business programme to help businesses understand and access the most appropriate form of finance for your business.
	Resource Efficiency East scheme helps businesses to improve their competitiveness by using resources more efficiently.
	At a national level there is:
	the Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) which is a temporary loan guarantee scheme launched on 14 January 2009. Under the EFG, Government will support up to £1.3 billion of bank loans to companies with a turnover of up to £25 million for working capital and investment. These will be smaller, viable, creditworthy firms that are struggling to access the finance they need because of the additional risk created by the downturn. EFG is due to end in March 2010 and an announcement about what will replace EFG will be made in due course.
	The Department records information on the Capital for Enterprise Fund on a regional basis, including the East of England. As of 7 July, the appointed fund managers report 44 formal inquiries from businesses in the East of England. Of which, one offer of investment totalling £2 million has been issued thus far.

Business: Government Assistance

Michael Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in Hemel Hempstead have  (a) applied for and  (b) received assistance from the (i) Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme and (ii) Capital for Enterprise Fund in 2009; and how much funding has been provided to businesses in Hemel Hempstead under each such scheme in 2009.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested in respect of the Enterprise Finance Guarantee for Hemel Hempstead since it was launched on 14 January 2009 is as follows:
	
		
			   Enterprise Finance Guarantee 
			 Number of loans offered 8 
			 Value of loans offered (£ million) 0.38 
			   
			 Number of loans drawn 5 
			 Value of loans drawn (£ million) 0.24 
		
	
	The Department only records information on a regional basis for the Capital for Enterprise Fund and the information for the East region is as follows:
	
		
			   Enterprise fund 
			 Number of loans under consideration 1 
			 Value of loans under consideration (£ million) 1 
			   
			 Number of loans offered 1 
			 Value of loans offered (£ million) 2 
			   
			 Number of offer terms agreed 0 
			 Value of offer terms agreed (£ million) 0

Business: Government Assistance

Michael Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in  (a) Hemel Hempstead and  (b) Hertfordshire (i) have sought access to funding under and (ii) are receiving assistance from the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme.

Rosie Winterton: Set out in the following tables is the information for the Enterprise Finance Guarantee for Hemel Hempstead and Hertfordshire since it was launched on 14 January 2009:
	
		
			   Hemel Hempstead 
			 Number of loans offered 8 
			 Value of loans offered (£ million) 0.38 
			   
			 Number of loans drawn 5 
			 Value of loans drawn (£ million) 0.24 
		
	
	
		
			   Hertfordshire 
			 Number of loans offered 110 
			 Value of loans offered (£ million) 10 
			   
			 Number of loans drawn 78 
			 Value of loans drawn (£ million) 7.09

Business: Government Assistance

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much had been lent through the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme up to 3 July 2009; and how many companies had received loans under that scheme.

Rosie Winterton: Since its launch on 14 January the Enterprise Finance Guarantee has over £596 million of eligible applications from 5,305 firms that have been granted, are being processed or assessed. 3,867 businesses have been offered loans totalling £381.23 million.

Business: Government Assistance

Mark Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much in loans guarantees have been  (a) applied for and  (b) provided under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme.

Rosie Winterton: Since its launch on 14 January the Enterprise Finance Guarantee has over £596 million of eligible applications from 5,305 firms that have been granted, are being processed or assessed. 3,867 businesses have been offered loans totalling £381.23 million.

Business: Government Assistance

Tony Baldry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2009,  Official Report, columns 189-90W, on business: Government assistance, whether the UK Innovation Investment Fund's Fund of Funds will invest monetary in unquoted companies.

David Lammy: The UK Innovation Investment Fund will invest in a small number of specialist technology funds. These underlying funds will invest in strategically-important companies in life sciences, clean technologies, digital and advanced manufacturing. Investments in individual companies will ultimately be a commercial decision for the Fund Manager based on the investment opportunity, the potential risk and the current investment portfolio. These companies may be quoted or unquoted.

Business: Greater Manchester

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what business support measures his Department provides for small and medium-sized businesses in Denton and Reddish.

Rosie Winterton: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Warrington, South (Helen Southworth) on 20 July 2009,  Official Report, column 1103W.

Business: Public Sector

Margaret Moran: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what assistance his Department plans to give to micro-businesses to compete for  (a) Government and  (b) local government contracts;
	(2)  what steps he plans to take to assist small and medium-sized enterprises to work together to obtain public sector contracts.

Ian Pearson: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government are committed to making it easier for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), including micro-businesses, to compete in public procurement.
	To that end, the Government are working to deliver the recommendations in the Glover committee report 'Accelerating the SME Economic Engine'.
	The Committee's Report can be found at:
	http://www.ogc.gov.uk/documents/Accelerating_the_SME_Economic_Enqine.pdf
	One of the recommendations is that public procurers should, during the advertising process, flag opportunities thought especially suitable for SMEs or consortia of SMEs. The Office of Government Commerce will shortly issue departments with guidance to help them do this. OGC is also working to develop training for Government procurers in SME-friendly practices, including early engagement with businesses to help them understand public sector needs and enable business to come together to form consortia for future bids.

Business: Wales

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many companies in Wales have  (a) applied for and  (b) received assistance under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme in each of the last six months; and how much each participating lender has provided to each in each month.

Rosie Winterton: In Wales, as of 1 July, £15 million of eligible applications from 200 firms have been granted, processed or assessed. Of which, 183 businesses have been offered loans totalling £12.9 million.

Carbon Emissions

Gregory Barker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what work his Department plans to undertake on policy on the low carbon economy.

Patrick McFadden: The Low Carbon Industrial Strategy, published recently, outlines the strategic role of Government in helping UK businesses maximise the economic benefits from the transition to a low carbon economy. It builds on an ambitious vision, set out by the Prime Minister on 6 March, and the Government's commitment in Budget 2009 to £1.4 billion of targeted support for the low carbon economy.

Colleges: Visits

David Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which colleges were visited by Ministers in his Department and the former Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills during the last 12 months.

Kevin Brennan: Ministers from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and Ministers from the former Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills visited colleges on 35 occasions over the last 12 months. Details are provided as follows:
	 College
	Kings College London
	Blackburn College
	City College Brighton and Hove
	Lewisham College
	New College Durham
	MidKent College
	Barnfield College (Luton)
	South Cheshire College (Crewe)
	Reaseheath College (Nantwich)
	The College of North East London
	Leeds College of Building
	York College
	The Mary Ward Centre (London)
	Walsall College
	Westminster Kingsway College
	Hackney Community College
	The Oldham College
	The College of Central London
	City College Brighton and Hove
	Swindon College
	Warwickshire College
	City of Bristol College
	Southgate College
	Capel Manor College (London)
	South Birmingham College
	Newham College
	Sutton Coldfield College
	Central Sussex College
	Westminster Kingsway College
	Greenwich Community College
	Bournville College (Birmingham)
	West Nottinghamshire College
	Dudley College
	Westminster Kingsway College
	Hackney Community College
	Barnfield College (Luton)

Company Accounts

John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many penalties for the late submission of accounts were issued by Companies House in each month in the last four years; how much revenue was raised; and what this revenue has been used for.

Ian Lucas: The following is the information:
	
		
			  PLC and private companies in Great Britain 
			   Number of late filing penalty invoices issued  Revenue raised(£) 
			 April 2005 17,268 2,505,000 
			 May 2005 16,478 1,980,000 
			 June 2005 15,890 2,145,000 
			 July 2005 14,667 1,800,000 
			 August 2005 15,820 2,042,000 
			 September 2005 15,885 1,652,000 
			 October 2005 13,795 2,745,000 
			 November 2005 14,671 5,145,000 
			 December 2005 12,075 2,522,000 
			 January 2006 22,574 2,500,000 
			 February 2006 21,410 3,512,000 
			 March 2006 21,356 1,752,000 
			 April 2006 17,235 3,272,000 
			 May 2006 17,959 1,982,000 
			 June 2006 18,314 5,238,000 
			 July 2006 15,224 1,992,000 
			 August 2006 17,968 1,985,000 
			 September 2006 16,258 1,992,000 
			 October 2006 15,969 1,577,000 
			 November 2006 19,908 6,404,000 
			 December 2006 16,114 1,981,000 
			 January 2007 21,005 3,954,000 
			 February 2007 19,721 3,948,000 
			 March 2007 25,223 4,476,000 
			 April 2007 19,062 2,161,000 
			 May 2007 21,393 3,127,000 
			 June 2007 18,937 5,105,000 
			 July 2007 21,927 3,119,000 
			 August 2007 21,445 4,115,000 
			 September 2007 18,008 2,634,000 
			 October 2007 17,397 3,097,000 
			 November 2007 22,692 4,116,000 
			 December 2007 16,289 3,147,000 
			 January 2008 20,748 4,129,000 
			 February 2008 22,334 3,621,000 
			 March 2008 18,467 3,629,000 
			 April 2008 21,348 3,979,000 
			 May 2008 20,552 3,619,000 
			 June 2008 16,074 3,619,000 
			 July 2008 20,616 3,429,000 
			 August 2008 20,926 3,546,000 
			 September 2008 17,818 4,057,000 
			 October 2008 19,872 5,039,000 
			 November 2008 20,774 4,021,000 
			 December 2008 22,076 2,510,000 
			 January 2009 24,214 4,984,000 
			 February 2009 32,275 5,022,000 
			 March 2009 26,912 9,039,000 
		
	
	Please note that revenue raised in any one month does not relate to the penalties issued in that month.
	Companies House is unable to say what the revenue has been used for as it is passed to HM Treasury.

Consumer's Home or Place of Work etc. Regulations 2008

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what guidance has been provided by  (a) his Department and  (b) the Certification Officer, on the application of the Cancellation of Contracts made in a Consumer's Home or Place of Work etc Regulations 2008 to the sale of trade union membership.

Kevin Brennan: The Department for Business, Innovations and Skills has produced general guidance, available on the BIS website, about the Cancellation of Contracts made in a Consumer's Home or Place of Work etc. Regulations 2008. The guidance does not specifically cover the application of the Regulations to the sale of union membership in a workplace.
	This is not an issue within the Certification Officer's jurisdiction and he has produced no guidance on the Regulations.

Corus: North East

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps the Government plan to take to secure the future of Corus in the North East.

Ian Lucas: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills has spoken to Kirby Adams, chief executive officer of Corus, on a number of occasions about the situation at Teesside Cast Products. In addition, officials have held ongoing discussions with the company to explore ways in which the Government can help resolve the dispute with the partners to the 10-year off-take agreement in a way that avoids job losses.
	We have urged Corus and, through our embassies overseas, the Consortia to keep working together to resolve their differences and reach a satisfactory solution that avoids redundancies. My right hon. Friend the Minister for Business, Innovation and Skills has also spoken direct to Corus and Marcegaglia (the Italian member of the Consortia) and as a result we understand that a meeting between Corus and Consortia members will take place soon at which Corus will present a proposal for a new contract and new commercial terms to replace the old agreement.
	As my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister stated in the House on 13 May, the Government stand ready to do whatever they can to support the company. We are not prepared to reconcile ourselves to the inevitable closure of this plant.
	In addition, the Government have offered the company £5 million training support, some of which could be used in the North East to train the work force, retain capacity in the UK, and help the company through the downturn and to recover more strongly in the upturn. This offer is a signal of the Government's commitment to Corus and its work force.

Credit: Licensing

John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many applications for renewals of consumer credit licences submitted to the Office of Fair Trading prior to their expiry date took longer than 90 days to process in each month of each year since 1997.

Kevin Brennan: The information is not readily available. I will write to the hon. Member giving a full response at the earliest opportunity.

Damian McBride

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on what date the Secretary of State last met Mr. Damian McBride in the course of his official duties.

Patrick McFadden: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has had no meetings with Damian McBride in the course of his ministerial duties.

Debts

David Drew: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will bring forward proposals to provide greater protection for debtors from early enforcement action through the courts.

Ian Lucas: The Government believe it is important to ensure all appropriate safeguards are in place to protect debtors from early enforcement action through the courts as a result of what might have been originally relatively small, unsecured borrowing.
	As set out in the recent White Paper A Better Deal for Consumers, we will therefore:
	Look at putting better warnings/explanations into unsecured credit agreements highlighting the risk of borrowers losing their home if they default on repayments;
	Consult on introducing a financial limit below which a creditor could not apply for an order for sale. In doing so, we will explore the implications of the threshold only applying to cases where the original debt arose under regulated consumer credit agreements.

Demos

Tom Watson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what  (a) private meetings and  (b) public engagements Ministers in his Department and its predecessors have attended at which representatives from the think-tank Demos were present in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Departmental Accountancy

Steve Webb: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he expects to publish his Department's resource accounts for 2008-09.

Patrick McFadden: For accounting, estimates and budgeting purposes, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) will continue to comprise of the former Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) and the former Department of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), until the transfer of functions order is authorised and a new estimate is approved by Parliament, at the same time as the winter supplementary estimates.
	Both Departments plan to lay annual reports and accounts prior to the summer parliamentary recess. Copies will be placed in the Libraries of the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

Departmental Billing

Mark Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  how many and what proportion of invoices his Department and its agencies paid within 10 days of receipt in each of the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of invoices his Department and its agencies paid within 10 days of receipt in each of the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: Since November 2008, the first full month of recording the new target, the then Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform has paid the following invoices within 10 working days:
	
		
			   Number of invoices paid  Percentage 
			 November 2008 2,365 93.1 
			 December 2008 2,222 96.9 
			 January 2009 2,535 96.7 
			 February 2009 2,324 96.2 
			 March 2009 3,119 97.2 
			 April 2009 2,428 96.3 
			 May 2009 2,284 89.1 
		
	
	Until October 2008, BERR was required to monitor and publish payment performance against a 30-day payment target. The first full month of formal recording against the 10-day target was November 2008 and information about payment performance within ten days prior to this date is not available.
	Since December 2008, the then Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills paid the following invoices within 10 working days:
	
		
			   Number of invoices paid  Number paid in 10 working days  Percentage 
			 December 2008 3,178 3,049 96 
			 January 2009 1,101 1,000 91 
			 February 2009 1,904 1,831 96 
			 March 2009 2,634 2,513 95 
			 April 2009 870 663 76 
			 May 2009 610 493 81 
		
	
	The first full month of formal recording against the 10-day target was December 2008 and information about payment performance within ten working days prior to this date is not available.
	The Department of Business, Innovation and Skills fully supports the Prime Minister's commitment of 8 October that central Government Departments will make payment within 10 days. We also currently encourage our leading suppliers to pass on our credit terms and will be working with them to reduce payment times along the entire supply chain.
	I have approached the chief executives of the Department's executive agencies and they will respond to the hon. Member directly.

Departmental Billing

Mark Oaten: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many days on average  (a) his Department and  (b) each of its agencies has taken to pay invoices from suppliers in each month since November 2008.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 10 June 2009
	Since November 2008, BIS (formerly the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills) have paid the following invoices:
	
		
			  Month  Number invoices paid  Average time to pay (days) 
			 November 2008 3,184 5.1 
			 December 2008 3,389 4.0 
			 January 2009 3,351 4.7 
			 February 2009 3,091 4.8 
			 March 2009 4,275 4.9 
			 April 2009 3,314 4.8 
			 May 2009 2,833 4.4 
		
	
	I have approached the chief executives of the Department's executive agencies and they will respond to the hon. Gentleman directly.

Departmental Consultants

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department has spent on consultants in  (a) 2008 and  (b) 2009.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills spent the following on consultants in financial years 2007/08, 2008/09 and 1 April 2009 to end June 2009.
	
		
			   £ 
			 2007/08 19,603,077 
			 2008/09 31,448,452 
			 1 April 2009 to end June 2009 2,297,192

Departmental Contracts

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which services his Department has outsourced in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: In each of the last five years the following services have been outsourced:
	February 2005 - Business Link national website outsourced to Serco and subsequently transferred to HMRC in 2007.
	May 2007 - production of departmental security passes outsourced to EC Harris, the Department's FMA provider.
	February 2009 - administration of Civil Service Pensions outsourced to Department of Work and Pensions. DWP is an Authorised Pension Administration Centre.

Departmental Contracts

Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many contracts let by his Department were awarded to businesses with fewer than 50 employees in each of the last five years; and what the monetary value of such contracts was in each such year.

Patrick McFadden: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Databases

Tom Watson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what information databases his Department  (a) maintains and  (b) uses; and which do not contain personal information.

Patrick McFadden: The Department holds a large number of databases ranging in size. These include corporate databases, access databases held by units within the Department and a large number of spreadsheets of data of which certainly the larger and more sophisticated could be described as fulfilling a database function. The vast majority of these databases and systems can be expected to a greater or lesser extent to contain personal data. It is not possible due to disproportionate costs to identify those databases which do not contain personal data.

Departmental Electronic Equipment

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many  (a) photocopiers,  (b) scanning devices and  (c) fax machines, excluding multi-function devices, there are in his Department; how many there were in his Department's predecessors in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: Much of the information requested is not held centrally by this Department as locally held equipment is the responsibility of individual Groups and it would involve disproportionate cost to establish this.
	In terms of photocopiers used in our central Reprographics pools, which included a service to ex-Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills staff in central London, there were 23 machines in 2007-08, 22 in 2008-09 and 19 currently.
	The scanners provided as part of the Department's core IT service are multi-function devices.
	The current number of operational fax machines across the BIS estate is 126. There are no historical records for fax machines used by BIS's predecessors, but there has been a rationalisation in recent years as the Department has introduced flexible working practices across its estate.
	I would also refer the hon. Member to the Government Strategy Greening Government ICT: Efficient, Sustainable, Responsible published on 17 July 2008,  Official Report, column 53WS.

Departmental Flexible Working

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what family-friendly working policies his Department and its predecessors have implemented in the last 12 years.

Patrick McFadden: In the last 12 years the Government have made great progress on providing support to working parents and encouraging family-friendly working practices through a balanced package which takes account of the needs of parents and the businesses which employ them. This includes significant improvements in maternity leave and pay. All employed women are now entitled to 52 weeks' maternity leave with 39 weeks' maternity pay. Employed fathers benefit from two weeks' paid paternity leave. Adopters are now entitled to the same periods of pay and leave as birth parents.
	We have ensured support does not end after the first year. Parents of children aged 16 or under, or whose child is disabled, can request a flexible working pattern. Employers must consider the request but may refuse on set business grounds. Eligible parents can take up to 13 weeks' parental leave up to their child's fifth birthday. Parents of disabled children can take up to 18 weeks' parental leave up to their child's 18th birthday.
	The wider needs of families are also recognised-carers of adults can also request a flexible working pattern and all employees are able to take a reasonable amount of time off work to deal with an emergency involving a dependant.

Departmental Internet

David Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department has spent on the development of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills website.

Patrick McFadden: The information is as follows.
	Cost breakdown (exc. VAT):
	Design and development: no external costs, as a free open source platform was used
	Hosting setup: £1,160.00
	Hosting (monthly charge): £449.00

Departmental Internet

Tom Watson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009,  Official Report, column 193W, on departmental internet, what the  (a) names and  (b) versions are of the web browsers used on the (i) desktop machines and (ii) laptop computers used by his Department's (A) Permanent Secretary, (B) chief information officer, (C) head of communications and (D) head of finance.

Patrick McFadden: All users in BIS currently use Microsoft Internet Explorer Version 6 from their desktop PC and laptops.

Departmental Lost Property

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many laptop computers belonging to  (a) his Department and its predecessors and  (b) its agencies have been lost or stolen in the last five years.

Patrick McFadden: The number of laptops reported lost or stolen from 2005 to end May 2009 is 46.
	I have approached the chief executives of the executive agencies and they will respond to the hon. Member directly.

Departmental Manpower

Jo Swinson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what percentage of employees in his Department are  (a) women and  (b) men; and what the average hourly pay of his Department's (i) male employees and (ii) female employees was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 16 July 2009
	 53 per cent. of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills work force are men and the remaining 47 per cent. are women. The average hourly salary for women is £15.44 and for men is £17.91.

Departmental Older Workers

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many staff in his Department will reach the age of 65 years by the year 2011.

Patrick McFadden: There are currently 32 staff in the Department who have reached the age of 65 and there are currently an additional 21 staff who will reach the age of 65 by the start of 2011.

Departmental Press

Philip Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what  (a) newspapers and  (b) periodicals are delivered to the private office of each Minister in his Department, and at what cost, in the latest period for which figures are available.

Patrick McFadden: The following list details what  (a) newspapers and  (b) periodicals are delivered to the private office of each Minister in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The total monthly cost at the present time is £899.20.
	 Newspaper/periodicals
	 Express
	Secretary of State
	 Mail
	Secretary of State
	Pat McFadden
	David Lammy
	Rosie Winterton
	 Mirror
	Secretary of State
	Pat McFadden
	Lord Young
	David Lammy
	Rosie Winterton
	 Telegraph
	Secretary of State
	Lord Davies
	Pat McFadden
	Lord Carter
	David Lammy
	Rosie Winterton
	 Financial Times
	Secretary of State
	Pat McFadden
	Lord Carter
	Lord Drayson
	Lord Young
	David Lammy
	Rosie Winterton
	Ian Lucas
	 Guardian
	Secretary of State
	Lord Davies
	Pat McFadden
	Lord Carter
	Lord Drayson
	Lord Young
	David Lammy
	Rosie Winterton
	Ian Lucas
	 International Herald Tribune
	Secretary of State
	Lord Carter
	 Independent
	Secretary of State
	Pat McFadden
	Lord Carter
	David Lammy
	Rosie Winterton
	 Sun
	Secretary of State
	Pat McFadden
	David Lammy
	Rosie Winterton
	 Times
	Secretary of State
	Lord Davies
	Pat McFadden
	Lord Carter
	Lord Drayson
	Lord Young
	David Lammy
	Rosie Winterton
	Ian Lucas
	 Times Higher
	Lord Drayson
	Lord Young
	Kevin Brennan
	David Lammy
	 Times Educational
	Kevin Brennan
	 Evening Standard 1st Edition
	Pat McFadden
	Rosie Winterton
	 Evening Standard West End Final
	Secretary of State
	Lord Davies
	Lord Carter
	 Economist
	Secretary of State
	Lord Davies
	Pat McFadden
	Lord Carter
	Lord Young
	Kevin Brennan
	David Lammy
	Rosie Winterton
	 New Statesman
	Secretary of State
	Lord Davies
	Pat McFadden
	Baroness Vadera
	Lord Carter
	David Lammy
	Rosie Winterton
	Ian Lucas
	 New Scientist
	Lord Young
	 Spectator
	Secretary of State
	Lord Davies
	Baroness Vadera
	Lord Carter
	 Private Eye
	Secretary of State
	Lord Davies
	Baroness Vadera
	Lord Carter
	 The Week
	Lord Davies
	 Fortune
	Lord Davies
	 Broadcast
	Lord Carter
	 Campaign
	Lord Carter
	 Marketing Week
	Lord Carter
	 Rail Times
	Lord Carter
	 Harvard Business Review
	Lord Young
	 European Voice
	Pat McFadden
	Ian Lucas
	 Voice Weekly
	David Lammy

Departmental Reviews

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many  (a) review and  (b) taskforce projects his Department has commissioned in each of the last five years since its creation; what the purpose of each such project is; when each such project (i) began and (ii) was completed; what the cost of each such project was; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: Summary information on taskforces and other standing bodies is available in the annual Cabinet Office publication Public Bodies. Copies of Public Bodies 2008 are available in the Libraries of the House.
	Detailed information on ad hoc advisory bodies is available in BERR Public Bodies Directory 2008 at:
	http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file49274.pdf
	Information about reviews commissioned since the Department's creation is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Stationery

Sarah Teather: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department and its predecessor spent on branded stationery and gifts for  (a) internal and  (b) external promotional use in each of the last five years.

Patrick McFadden: Central records indicate that spending by the former Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform on branded stationery in the financial year 2008/09 was £72,208.35.
	This covers all branded stationery, such as business cards, letterheads, folders, compliment slips and special forms, purchased through a new central stationery supplier by BERR, UK Trade and Investment, BERR's two agencies, Companies House and the Insolvency Service and the following BERR delivery partners: ACAS, Low Pay Commission, Office of Manpower Economics (OME), SITPRO and the Tribunals Service. It also includes spend on branded stationery procured by the Strategic Marketing team.
	Complete figures for spending by the former BERR on all branded stationery in previous years could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The following figures are available for spending on headed stationery via the previous central stationery supplier and a range of branded stationery items procured by the strategic marketing team:
	2007/08 £16,013.71
	2006/07 £3,472.00
	2005/06 £9,859.51
	2004/05 £20,107.85
	Information about spending on gifts is not held centrally and can only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Training

Philip Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what training courses have been attended by special advisers in his Department and its predecessors in the last 12 months; and at what cost.

Patrick McFadden: Special advisers receive training as appropriate to enable them to fulfil their duties and responsibilities as set out in the model contract for special advisers.
	Internal laptop training was provided on 12 December 2008, at a cost of £310. No further training courses have been attended by special advisers for my Department, and its predecessors, within the last 12 months.

Departmental Work Experience

Mark Oaten: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many  (a) paid and  (b) unpaid graduate internships his Department has awarded in each of the last six months.

David Lammy: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills was only created on 5 June 2009. It is fully committed to supporting the Graduate Talent Pool, the Government's new graduate internship programme, and will be awarding a number of internships in the coming months.

Departmental Work Experience

Phil Willis: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many interns work in his Department; what terms of reference apply to their appointment; what remuneration they receive; and how long on average an intern appointment lasts.

Patrick McFadden: The Department currently has four interns. They are employed on a training contract and receive £300 per week outside London and £350 inside London for a period of around 12 weeks.

Digital Broadcasting: Hertfordshire

Michael Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent estimate he has made of the number of  (a) households and  (b) businesses in (i) Hemel Hempstead, (ii) Dacorum and (iii) Hertfordshire which will be liable for payment of the proposed levy contained in the Digital Britain White Paper.

Patrick McFadden: This Department has made no specific estimate of the number of  (a) households and  (b) businesses in (i) Hemel Hempstead, (ii) Dacorum and (iii) Hertfordshire liable for payment of the proposed levy contained in the Digital Britain White Paper. The independent regulator, Ofcom estimates, however that Hertfordshire has 477,235 fixed lines of which Hemel Hempstead has 43,260, with 1,700 businesses. As the analysis was not carried out at boundary level, but rather at constituency and county level, Ofcom does not have estimates for Dacorum.
	Under existing rules any individual in receipt of income support, income-based jobseeker's allowance, pensions credit (guaranteed credit) or employment and support allowance (income related) is entitled to social telephony. As set out in the Digital Britain White Paper published on 16 June 2009 the Government do not wish to see a widening digital divide. Therefore the Government expect that individuals that subscribe to social telephony packages would also be exempt from the broadband levy to fund the deployment of next generation networks.

Digital Broadcasting: Wales

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 1 July 2009,  Official Report, column 324W, on digital broadcasting: Wales, when he plans to decide how much funding to allocate to Wales in each financial year from 2009-10 to 2013-14.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The procurement process for the Universal Service Commitment, and therefore the process for identifying the extent to which specific areas will benefit, will be carried out by the Network Design and Procurement Group which we aim to set up during the autumn. It is impossible to determine the level of funding for specific areas at this time, as much will depend on the technologies used to deliver the commitment.

Digital Technology: Disabled

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  what steps his Department is taking to ensure that disabled people who require a relay service in order to use voice-operated telephone services are able to access the opportunities outlined in Digital Britain: The Interim Report; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will ensure that the final report on Digital Britain includes specific provisions for disabled users, including those who are unable to use existing voice telephony services.

Patrick McFadden: The Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS), along with Ofcom, remains committed to improving communications services for disabled users including deaf and hearing impaired people. We have worked in the ongoing EU review of the electronic communications framework to introduce into the framework directives the concept of ensuring equivalence of access for disabled users.
	BIS continues to make a financial contribution to a representative disability stakeholder group with a view to securing expert advice on the telecommunications sector and disability issues. We remain committed to ensuring that all parts of society, including people with disabilities, can benefit from the policies set out in the Digital Britain White Paper, published on 16 June.

EC Internal Trade

Philip Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment his Department has made of the financial benefits to UK businesses of the EU single market.

Ian Lucas: The most recent assessment of the benefits of the single market is contained within the publication The Single Market: A Vision for the 21st Century, published jointly with HM Treasury:
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/eer_singlemarket21_121.pdf.
	The Department's recent publication The Future of EU Competitiveness
	http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file51732.pdf
	sets out policy priorities for the single market and also includes references to benefits the single market has brought.

EC Law

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the proportion of statutory obligations provided for by legislation on matters for which his Department is responsible which were introduced as a consequence of obligations arising from EU legislation in the latest period for which figures are available.

Patrick McFadden: It is very difficult to provide precise figures for the proportion of UK legislation that stems from the European Union. The administrative burdens measurement exercise (ABME) carried out by the Government in 2006 put the proportion of administrative burdens stemming from the EU at approximately 1/3 of the total administrative burden.
	No figures are available for legislation for which BIS is responsible. The ABME report for the former Department of Trade and Industry is available at
	http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file35841.pdf
	The important thing is not the origins of legislation, which could of course be a devolved Administration or a local authority, as well as the Government or the EU, but the quality of the regulation. All regulations, irrespective of their origins, should comply with the principles of better regulation. Regulations should be risk based, proportionate and well designed, so as to achieve their objectives whilst also keeping costs to a minimum. The Government continue to work with European partners to ensure that EU regulations meet these standards.

Education Maintenance Allowance

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 1 July 2009,  Official Report, column 17WS, on the Education (Student Support) Regulations, when the cancellation of the guarantee of student support for education maintenance allowance recipients will take effect; and whether students planning to enter higher education in 2009-10 will be covered by the guarantee.

David Lammy: The guarantee was not due to come into effect until academic year 2010-11; former EMA recipients entering higher education in 2009-10 would always have been treated in the same way as other applicants for student support, being assessed at the point of application. In these difficult economic times, it is both fair and reasonable to expect that those students who see an improvement in their financial circumstances are assessed for student support according to their need. We have therefore revised our plans for a guarantee of student support with effect from the date of the written statement, and will offer students in receipt of EMA a clear quote of the student support they will receive if their circumstances are unchanged at the time they apply for higher education.

Education: Finance

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding was allocated by the Learning and Skills Council to each educational establishment in Milton Keynes in each of the last five years.

Kevin Brennan: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) has responsibility for the funding of post-16 further education and training. Information on individual provider funding is not held centrally by this Department. I have therefore asked the chief executive of the LSC to write to the hon. Member with post-16 funding allocations for further education providers in the Milton Keynes area. A copy will be placed in the House Library.

Emergency Calls

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to monitor compliance with regulations regarding emergency service numbers on the part of EU-registered voice over internet protocol providers offering services in the UK.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 14 July 2009
	The matter raised is the responsibility of the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom), which is accountable to Parliament rather than Ministers. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of Ofcom to reply directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the chief executive's letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Emergency Calls

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of voice over internet protocol providers which offer access to emergency service telephone numbers.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 14 July 2009
	The matter raised is the responsibility of the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom), which is accountable to Parliament rather than Ministers. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of Ofcom to reply directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the chief executive's letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Emergency Calls

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to ensure Skype provides access to emergency numbers.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 16 July 2009
	The matter raised is the responsibility of the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom), which is accountable to Parliament rather than Ministers. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of Ofcom to reply directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the chief executive's letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Employment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of the effects on the economy of downshifting by employees.

Patrick McFadden: To date the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has not undertaken any research in this area.
	The Government are closely monitoring the labour market impacts of the current economic challenges. We are committed to supporting the UK through the recession and believe the measures we have in place to support businesses and workers are effective.
	The reports of approaches such as downshifting highlight that in some areas employers and staff are working together to protect businesses and jobs. This is evidence of the flexibility of the UK labour market-these approaches help to protect jobs of those affected and help ensure that businesses retain the skills needed to respond to future opportunities.

Energy: Disconnections

John Mason: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many customers have been disconnected by each energy provider in each of the last eight quarters.

David Kidney: I have been asked to reply.
	Ofgem monitors the level of debt and disconnection and publishes relevant data in annual and quarterly reports. The most recent quarterly report was published in January 2009 and contained data for the third quarter of 2008.
	Data from these reports show that the numbers of electricity and gas customers disconnected for debt over the last eight quarters were:
	
		
			  Supplier  Fuel  Q4 2006  Q1 2007  Q2 2007  Q3 2007  Q4 2007  Q1 2008  Q2 2008  Q3 2008 
			 British Gas Elec 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			  Gas 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			   
			 Countrywide Gas Gas 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			   
			 E.ON(1) Elec 26 49 79 124 224 152 159 26 
			  Gas 99 189 153 293 293 198 225 22 
			 Ecotricity Elec 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			   
			 EDF Energy Elec 99 71 89 181 153 186 361 315 
			  Gas 166 120 206 278 274 305 284 281 
			   
			 Electricity and Gas Plus Supply Ltd.(2) Elec 0 0 0 0 0 7 11 9 
			  Gas 2 2 0 0 0 8 39 18 
			   
			 First Utility Elec n/a 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			  Gas n/a 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			   
			 Good Energy Elec 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 7 
			   
			 Npower(3) Elec 171 238 148 194 281 101 60 61 
			  Gas 464 711 609 582 441 308 33 13 
			   
			 Scottish and Southern Elec 37 50 64 31 33 31 42 61 
			  Gas 187 162 293 132 141 104 129 64 
			   
			 Scottish Power Elec 124 136 202 142 168 252 323 208 
			  Gas 241 205 277 177 189 184 229 237 
			   
			 Utlita Elec n/a 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			  Gas n/a 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			   
			 Total Elec 457 544 582 672 859 729 960 687 
			  Gas 1,159 1,389 1,538 1,462 1,338 1,107 939 635 
			 (1) Up to and including Q4 this supplier was reported on as Powergen. (2) Up to and including Q4 2006 this supplier was reported on as Telecom Plus. (3) Npower figures through to Q4 2007 also include Npower Northern and Npower Yorkshire. 
		
	
	Full details of Ofgem's annual and quarterly reports can be found online at:
	http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Sustainability/SocAction/Monitoring/SoObMonitor/Pages/SocObMonitor.aspx

Energy: Expenditure

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to paragraph 7.28 of Budget 2009, how the £250 million of funding allocated to his Department for low-carbon energy and green manufacturing will be spent.

Patrick McFadden: The first investments from the £250 million of funding allocated for low carbon economic development will be set out in the Low Carbon Industrial Strategy on Wednesday 15 July. All funding will be allocated, examining the costs and benefits, consistent with Green Book criteria.

Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme

Mark Hoban: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will place in the Library a copy of the lending terms of the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme.

Rosie Winterton: The lending terms for the Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) are that the business:
	meets an approved EFG lender's commercial lending criteria and determination that use of EFG is appropriate;
	has a turnover of up to £25 million; and
	is seeking a loan of between £1,000 and £1 million;
	The EFG loan (either unsecured or partially secured) may be used as a new term loan, as a new term loan specifically for the purpose of transferring long term debt out of an overdraft in order to release capacity in the overdraft or as refinancing of an existing secured loan which would otherwise be withdrawn due to deterioration in the quality of the security
	EFG is available for most business purposes and sectors. However, EFG is subject to certain sector restrictions arising from the EU De Minimis Aid rules, the Industrial Development Act 1982 (which provides the statutory basis for EFG) and also for national policy reasons which are detailed on the BIS website.

Export Credits Guarantee Department

Vincent Cable: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the Answer of 7 July 2009,  Official Report, column 766W, on the Export Credits Guarantee Department, what projects the Export Credits Guarantee Department supported through its Fixed Rate Export Finance Scheme between 1 January 2002 and 31 December 2008; and what the  (a) date of approval,  (b) amount of exposure at that date,  (c) UK company concerned,  (d) destination country for the export and  (e) project or product involved was in each case.

Ian Lucas: holding answer 16 July 2009
	Details of exports supported under ECGD's Fixed Rate Export Finance (FREF) scheme between 1 January 2002 and 31 December 2008 are provided as follows:
	
		
			  Date of approval  Amount of exposure at that date (£)  UK company concerned  Destination country of the export  Project or product involved 
			 25 January 2002 35,700,000 Mabey and Johnson Ltd Papua New Guinea Steel bridgework 
			 25 February 2002 600,000 Alstom Power UK Mexico Spares for gas turbines 
			 14 March 2002 300,000 Angloco Ltd St. Lucia Firefighting vehicles 
			 11 April 2002 33,515,984 Alstom Power Plants Ltd Turkey Reinsurance to Coface relating to 2x 160 MLO Power Station at Can 
			 16 June 2002 27,132,515 Airbus SAS Hong Kong Airbus aircraft 
			 20 June 2002 362,554 Sedgewall Communication Group Ltd Tunisia Railway communications equipment 
			 2 July 2002 2,678,800 NSG Exports Ltd Barbados Vehicles and equipment for road network improvement 
			 18 July 2002 19,300,000 Airbus SAS Qatar Airbus aircraft 
			 29 July 2002 1,294,148 Dunlop Oil and Marine Ltd Mexico Supply of 86 oil transportation hoses 
			 14 August 2002 2,656,421 Findel Education Ltd Brazil Laboratory equipment 
			 14 August 2002 214,433 John Gordon Ltd Costa Rica Coffee husk burners for coffee dryers 
			 12 September 2002 358,851 Vikoma International Ltd Mexico Hi-Sprint oil spill containment boom system 
			 25 September 2002 778,274 Alstom Power UK Mexico Overhaul of 2 TA 1750 gas generators 
			 3 October 2002 975 Angloco Ltd St. Lucia Firefighting vehicles 
			 21 October 2002 1,674,211 Telspec Europe Ltd Kazakhstan Supply of pair gains technology 
			 26 November 2002 7,347,003 Odebrecht Oil and Gas Services Ltd Mexico Supply of goods and rendering of services for a living quarters platform 
			 26 November 2002 1,627,704 Mabey and Johnson ltd Venezuela 8 compact bridges 
			 6 February 2003 117,405 Kier International Ltd Jamaica Flyover bridges 
			 7 February 2003 2,931,733 Saywell International Ltd Brazil Aircraft generators, avionics and ancillary equipment 
			 10 February 2003 11,237,003 Martin-Baker Aircraft Company Ltd Brazil Ejection seat equipment 
			 17 February 2003 11,729,401 Martin-Baker Aircraft Company Ltd Brazil Supply of ejection seat and associated equipment for AL-X Super Tucano aircraft 
			 14 March 2003 526,605 Mabey and Johnson Ltd Dominican Republic Steel bridgework 
			 11 April 2003 1,833,445 Rolls Wood Group (Repair and Overhaul) Ltd Mexico Generator upgrade 
			 13 June 2003 7,279,627 Lagan International ltd Maldives Upgrade of Gan International Airport 
			 17 June 2003 19,790,378 Mabey and Johnson Ltd Jamaica Steel bridges 
			 15 July 2003 21,766,910 Mabey and Johnson Ltd Sri Lanka Bridge refurbishment 
			 29 August 2003 8,994,118 Thales Training and Simulation Ltd Tunisia A320 Flight simulator 
			 5 September 2003 2,228,540 MRB Schumag Ltd Mexico Tube drawing machinery 
			 23 October 2003 4,121,687 Thales ATM Ltd Dominican Republic Radar and Control centre for Punta Cana Airport 
			 19 November 2003 4,019,245 MRB Schumag Ltd Mexico Copper tube processing plant 
			 29 April 2004 3,034,619 Sir William Halcrow and Partners Ltd Venezuela Phase 4 of Barcelona project 
			 3 November 2004 6,636,455 Kellogg Brown and Root Ltd Kazakhstan Engineering services for Alibekmola oil field 
			 22 February 2005 799,093 Guralp Systems Ltd Turkey Earthquake and Seismology equipment 
			 30 August 2005 92,827,324 Mabey and Johnson Ltd Philippines Highways, bridges and flyovers 
			 12 October 2005 31,964,268 Rolls-Royce Power Engineering plc Brazil Power generation modules 
			 12 October 2005 7,768,717 VWS Westgarth Ltd Brazil P52 Sulphate reduction 
			 12 October 2005 2,513,830 Koch Chemical Technology Group Ltd Brazil Vacuum dearation for P52 project 
			 12 October 2005 1,578,285 Invsat Ltd Brazil Telecom package for P52 project 
			 24 November 2006 50,800,373 Mabey and Johnson Ltd Philippines Rural bridges programme 
			 31 January 2007 23,955,611 Thales Training and Simulation Limited Russia Superjet 100 full flight simulators 
			 20 May 2008 18,720,905 PW Limited Ghana Construction of Kotoka Airport 
			  Notes: (i) The amount of exposure shown is the maximum liability under the ECGD guarantee; FREF support may have been provided in whole or in part of that amount; (ii) The domicile of the obligor or, if applicable, the guarantor of the obligor under the ECGD facility has been given as the destination country of the export. Exceptionally, exports are supplied to a different country from that of the obligor and/or the guarantor; and (iii) Information on two FREF cases has not been provided as disclosure would be prejudicial to the commercial interests of the obligors or international relations or both.

Gangmasters Licensing Authority

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the merits of extending the remit of the Gangmasters Licensing Authority to  (a) the construction sector and  (b) other sectors.

Patrick McFadden: The Government looked carefully at the issue of extending the GLA-style licensing regime to other sectors, including the construction sector, as part of the Vulnerable Worker Enforcement Forum that I chaired last year. The Forum consisted of union and business representatives, Citizens Advice, and the key workplace enforcement bodies. There was a full debate, but no consensus was reached on the issue.
	Following the work of the Vulnerable Worker Enforcement Forum, the Government's focus has been to prioritise effective enforcement of the existing law. We have taken steps to strengthen the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate which regulates employment agencies in the non-GLA sectors, and to raise its profile among both agency workers and agencies themselves.
	There have been calls more recently for the Government to look at this issue as my hon. Friend the Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire, North (Jim Sheridan) put forward a 10-minute rule Bill on 10 June 2009, and my hon. Friend the Member for Hayes and Harlington (John McDonnell) tabled an Early Day Motion on 28 April 2009. More recently, Rita Donaghy's report into the underlying causes of fatalities in the construction sector, commissioned by the Department for Work and Pensions, was published on 9 July 2009 and recommended the extension of the GLA's remit to the construction sector. The Government will fully consider all the recommendations before responding later in the year.

Government Departments: Procurement

Mark Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many  (a) unique visitors,  (b) new registrations and  (c) total registrations there were to the supply2.gov.uk website in each of the last 12 months.

Rosie Winterton: The information is as follows.
	 (a) Unique visitors per month to the website:
	
		
			   Number 
			  2008  
			 April 26,831 
			 May 34,502 
			 June 32,451 
			 July 55,544 
			 August 31,714 
			 September 36,240 
			 October 40,099 
			 November 35,830 
			 December 27,775 
			   
			  2009  
			 January 41,113 
			 February 50,274 
			 March 52,320 
		
	
	 (b) New supplier registrations:
	
		
			   Number 
			  2008  
			 April 3,160 
			 May 5,821 
			 June 4,079 
			 July 12,642 
			 August 3,657 
			 September 4,063 
			 October 4,555 
			 November 4,257 
			 December 2,953 
			   
			  2009  
			 January 5,645 
			 February 9,088 
			 March 8,430 
		
	
	 (c) Total supplier registrations April 2008 to March 2009: 68,350.

Government Departments: Procurement

Mark Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many contracts were advertised on the supply2.gov.uk website in each of the last 12 months; how many of them were subsequently awarded to firms who had submitted a bid via that website; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The number of opportunities advertised on the Supply2.gov website in the last 12 months are as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			  2008  
			 April 3,486 
			 May 3,240 
			 June 3,069 
			 July 3,448 
			 August 3,426 
			 September 3,113 
			 October 3,664 
			 November 3,465 
			 December 3,901 
			   
			  2009  
			 January 3,592 
			 February 3,711 
			 March 2,117 
		
	
	The supply2.gov.uk site offers consolidated access to public sector opportunities and allows businesses to search and view open lower-value contract opportunities in a single place. It does not measure contract awards. No estimate is available for the number or value of contracts won through the site.

Graduates

David Laws: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many and what proportion of  (a) physics,  (b) chemistry,  (c) engineering and  (d) information and communication technology graduates were women in each year since 2001.

David Lammy: The number and proportion of female postgraduates and undergraduates qualifying in Physics, Chemistry, Engineering and Computer Science are shown in the tables. Figures for the 2008-09 academic year will be available in January 2010.
	The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) changed their method of coding subjects for the academic year from 2002-03 so it is not possible to make direct comparisons with figures prior to this date. As a result the time series shown in the table commence from 2002, rather than 2001 as requested.
	
		
			  Female postgraduate qualifiers( 1)  in physics, chemistry, engineering and computer science, UK higher education institutions: Academic  y ears 2002-03 to 2007-08 
			   Physics  Chemistry  Engineering  Computer science( 2) 
			   Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  % 
			 2002-03 220 23 915 39 1,410 17 2,530 30 
			 2003-04 220 24 630 39 1,710 18 2,345 28 
			 2004-05 245 26 580 38 2,090 19 2,205 25 
			 2005-06 255 26 560 40 2,240 19 2,020 24 
			 2006-07 255 26 605 40 2,150 18 1,780 22 
			 2007-08 255 25 510 37 2,225 19 1,815 22 
			 (1) Covers female postgraduate qualifiers of all domiciles from full-time and part-time courses (2) Includes computer science, information systems, software engineering, artificial intelligence and other broadly based programmes. No tes: 1. Figures exclude the Open University due to their incorrect coding of subjects across the time series. 2. figures are rounded to the nearest five. 3. Percentages are rounded to the nearest integer.  Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency 
		
	
	
		
			  Female  under graduate qualifiers( 1)  in physics, chemistry, engineering and computer science, UK higher education institutions: Academic  y ears 2002-03 to 2007-08 
			   Physics  Chemistry  Engineering  Computer science( 2) 
			   Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  % 
			 2002-03 520 23 1,510 45 2,665 12 6,185 25 
			 2003-04 515 23 1,450 47 2,740 13 6,275 24 
			 2004-05 480 21 1,520 49 2,585 12 5,690 22 
			 2005-06 530 22 1,260 46 2,730 13 4,970 21 
			 2006-07 500 22 1,335 46 2,595 12 4,240 20 
			 2007-08 520 22 1,375 44 2,750 12 3,840 20 
			 (1) Covers female undergraduate qualifiers of all domiciles from full-time and part-time courses (2) Includes computer science, information systems, software engineering, artificial intelligence and other broadly based programmes. No tes: 1. Figures exclude the Open University due to their incorrect coding of subjects across the time series. 2. figures are rounded to the nearest five. 3. Percentages are rounded to the nearest integer.  Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency

Greece

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the dates and times were of each official engagement the Secretary of State undertook  (a) at the Bilderberg Conference and  (b) at other times on his visit to Greece in May; and which (i) individuals and (ii) companies he met on each of those engagements.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 7 July 2009
	On Friday 15 May prior to the conference my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State met a number of UK and Greek businesses at a business breakfast hosted at the British embassy and the Union of Greek Shipowners. He also met his counterpart in the Greek Government. During the course of the conference he was able to have productive meetings with other attendees about the future of the UK automotive sector and other issues.

Havering Sixth Form College: Finance

Angela Watkinson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether funding will be made available to Havering Sixth Form College to revise the enabling works undertaken in its unsuccessful bid for its Learning and Skills Council capital project.

Kevin Brennan: holding answer 20 July 2009
	The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) has supported colleges throughout the development of capital proposals, and is committed to meeting all outstanding contractual obligations. The LSC has consistently said that it will ensure no college is unable to meet its financial obligations as a result of decisions on capital projects. Whether funding will be made available to Havering Sixth Form College is a matter for the LSC.

Higher Education: Admissions

Annette Brooke: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of creating 5,000 further student places in 2009-10; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: holding answer 20 July 2009
	In 2008-09 the total cost of the maintenance grant and resource accounting and budgeting cost of loans was around £3,000 per student where the RAB charge represents the future cost to Government of subsidising and writing off the loans issued. £3,000 is likely to be an under-estimate of providing an extra place in 2009-10 because it is partly based on students falling under less generous student support regulations than are in operation in 2009-10. The maximum total grant and RAB cost per entrant in 2009-10 is around £5,200, therefore the academic year student support cost for the first year of study for 5,000 additional entrants in 2009 could be anything up to £26 million; depending on students' individual characteristics.
	No estimate of teaching costs is offered here as these vary between courses and institutions. The allocation of teaching grant to institutions to help meet these costs is governed by the Higher Education Funding Council for England. Guidance on how HEFCE allocates its funds is available at:
	http://www.hefce.ac.uk/Pubs/hefce/2008/08 33/

Higher Education: Admissions

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many applicants to higher education institutions  (a) found a place in clearing and  (b) were eligible to find a place in clearing in each year since 1993.

David Lammy: Information on clearing is not available for 1993, as applications to higher education were processed through the University Central Council on Admissions (UCCA) and the Polytechnics and Colleges Admissions Service (PCAS). UCCA and PCAS numbers on clearing are not held centrally. From 1994, applications were processed through the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS).
	The numbers for 1994 onwards are in the table, which has been placed in the Library.

Higher Education: Admissions

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the letter of 21 July 2009 from the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills to the Higher Education Funding Council for England, how many additional students he expects to be in higher education in 2009-10; and what progress the Government have made towards their commitment of having half of all young people attend higher education by 2010.

David Lammy: Our grant letter to HEFCE this year confirmed additional teaching grant funding for the equivalent of an extra 10,000 full-time-equivalent places in 2009-10. HEFCE estimate that this will result in 3,000 additional full-time first year entrants. Further to this, we announced on 20 July 2009 that we would be providing financial support for an additional 10,000 students in science, technology, engineering and maths over the duration of their course in Higher Education. We will not receive outturn data on the 2009-10 student population until early 2011.
	The Comprehensive Spending Review 2007 target was to increase participation in Higher Education towards 50 per cent. of those aged 18 to 30 with growth of at least a percentage point every two years to the academic year 2010-11. Over half of young people from all social backgrounds aspire to go to university. Progression towards 50 per cent. is a measure of how well we are responding to the families who want the best for their children while making an essential investment in our economic success. Latest figures showed 43.3 per cent. of 17-30 year olds participated for the first time in higher education in 2007-08.

Higher Education: Admissions

Fraser Kemp: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what percentage of young people living in  (a) Sunderland and  (b) England entered university in each of the last 10 years.

David Lammy: The Government do not collect data on the number of people resident in a particular area who are not in higher education. Therefore, it is not possible to calculate what percentage of young people living in Sunderland local authority entered university in the last 10 years.
	The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) published Young participation in higher education in January 2005, which is available from the HEFCE website at:
	http://www.hefce.ac.uk/pubs/hefce/2005/05_03/
	The HEFCE report shows participation rates for young people who enter higher education aged 18 or 19 disaggregated by local education authority (LEA) for the years 1997 to 2000.
	At national level, the Higher Education Initial Participation Rate (HEIPR) covers English-domiciled 17 to 30-year-old first-time entrants to higher education courses, at UK higher education institutions and English, Scottish and Welsh further education colleges, who remain on their course for at least six months. The latest available figure is 43 per cent. in 2007/08. For young people (aged 17-20), the figure is 34 per cent.
	The number of young entrants to higher education from Sunderland local authority and England, in the last 10 years, are shown as an alternative in the table. Figures for the 2008/09 academic year will be available in January 2010.
	
		
			  Young( 1)  undergraduate entrants( 2)  from Sunderland local authority( 3)  and England, UK higher education institutions( 4) ,  academic year  1998/99 to 2007/08 
			  Academic year  Sunderland  England 
			 1998/99 910 203,950 
			 1999/2000 850 206,935 
			 2000/01 870 208,065 
			 2001/02 965 216,300 
			 2002/03 940 220,980 
			 2003/04 1,030 222,270 
			 2004/05 1,035 226,570 
			 2005/06 1,200 244,175 
			 2006/07 1,135 235,260 
			 2007/08 1,065 246,680 
			 (1) Covers entrants under the age of 21. (2) Covers entrants to full-time and part-time courses. (3) The table does not include entrants where the local authority area of the student cannot be established due to missing or invalid home postcodes. (4) Excludes the Open university due to inconsistencies in their coding of entrants across the time series.  Notes: 1. Figures are on a snapshot basis as at 1 December. 2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest five.  Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).

Higher Education: Greater Manchester

Mark Hunter: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people resident in each local authority area in Greater Manchester  (a) applied for and  (b) enrolled on a course in a higher education institution in each year since 1997.

David Lammy: The latest information from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) on the number of applicants and accepted applicants to full-time undergraduate courses is shown in table 1.
	
		
			  Table 1: Applicants and accepted applicants to full-time undergraduate courses via Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) 
			  Academic year  Bolton  Bury  Manchester  Oldham  Rochdale  Salford 
			  Applicants   
			 1997-98 1,704 1,187 2,588 1,129 1,205 929 
			 1998-99 1,644 1,236 2,475 1,091 1,224 962 
			 1999-2000 1,624 1,210 2,517 1,166 1,289 905 
			 2000-01 1,542 1,239 2,585 1,161 1,262 888 
			 2001-02 1,661 1,249 2,709 1,363 1,316 954 
			 2002-03 1,591 1,253 2,825 1,392 1,355 986 
			 2003-04 1,719 1,296 3,124 1,314 1,290 1,042 
			 2004-05 1,769 1,310 3,328 1,409 1,307 1,047 
			 2005-06 1,725 1,409 3,812 1,369 1,302 1,144 
			 2006-07 1,796 1,392 3,571 1,493 1,533 1,308 
			 2007-08 1,857 1,468 3,922 1,652 1,495 1,392 
			 2008-09 2,113 1,649 4,540 1,802 1,783 1,640 
			
			  Accepted applicants   
			 1997-98 1,350 920 1,821 908 964 673 
			 1998-99 1,322 977 1,775 872 957 727 
			 1999-2000 1,343 974 1,863 923 1,033 699 
			 2000-01 1,264 998 1,950 943 1,013 710 
			 2001-02 1,392 1,010 2,074 1,125 1,026 745 
			 2002-03 1,320 1,047 2,214 1,162 1,102 778 
			 2003-04 1,430 1,087 2,414 1,085 1,038 848 
			 2004-05 1,463 1,079 2,528 1,107 1,027 787 
			 2005-06 1,423 1,168 2,926 1,096 1,019 881 
			 2006-07 1,456 1,176 2,752 1,247 1,199 995 
			 2007-08 1,500 1,214 3,023 1,366 1,229 1,066 
			 2008-09 1,726 1,393 3,504 1,493 1,465 1,252 
		
	
	
		
			  Academic year  Stockport  Tameside  Trafford  Wigan 
			  Applicants 
			 1997-98 2,025 986 1,587 1,320 
			 1998-99 2,098 969 1,654 1,436 
			 1999-2000 1,990 925 1,590 1,422 
			 2000-01 1,946 959 1,511 1,390 
			 2001-02 1,997 980 1,523 1,490 
			 2002-03 1,989 1,023 1,581 1,390 
			 2003-04 2,015 996 1,574 1,540 
			 2004-05 2,047 988 1,585 1,497 
			 2005-06 2,304 1,083 1,626 1,639 
			 2006-07 2,148 1,209 1,991 1,661 
			 2007-08 2,223 1,313 2,060 1,671 
			 2008-09 2,335 1,467 2,283 1,989 
			  
			  Accepted applicants 
			 1997-98 1,623 765 1,259 1,026 
			 1998-99 1,679 748 1,312 1,121 
			 1999-2000 1,609 723 1,289 1,141 
			 2000-01 1,609 783 1,230 1,123 
			 2001-02 1,680 775 1,263 1,209 
			 2002-03 1,725 838 1,328 1,187 
			 2003-04 1,687 818 1,329 1,253 
			 2004-05 1,732 814 1,318 1,242 
			 2005-06 1,924 886 1,387 1,376 
			 2006-07 1,812 979 1,664 1,369 
			 2007-08 1,886 1,036 1,740 1,366 
			 2008-09 1,979 1,198 1,914 1,626 
			  Source: UCAS 
		
	
	The latest information from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) on the number of students enrolled on their first year of their course is shown in table 2.
	Figures for the 2008-09 academic year will be available in January 2010.
	
		
			  Table 2: Full-time and part-time undergraduate entrants from Greater Manchester local authorities( 1) -UK higher education institutions( 2) , academic years 1997-98 to 2007-08 
			  Academic year  Mode of study  Bolton  Bury  Manchester  Oldham  Rochdale 
			 1997-98 FT 1,525 995 1,980 960 1,025 
			  PT 495 340 480 320 285 
			 1998-99 FT 1,555 1,075 1,775 915 1,030 
			  PT 640 445 740 395 390 
			 1999-2000 FT 1,615 1,120 2,030 990 1,155 
			  PT 640 470 680 375 390 
			 2000-01 FT 1,505 1,140 1,990 1,025 1,160 
			  PT 575 450 575 385 390 
			 2001-02 FT 1,735 1,185 2,250 1,195 1,225 
			  PT 610 510 685 305 395 
			 2002-03 FT 1,690 1,195 2,465 1,230 1,255 
			  PT 665 560 725 340 425 
			 2003-04 FT 1,730 1,235 2,510 1,180 1,240 
			  PT 705 545 1,200 435 510 
			 2004-05 FT 1,830 1,265 2,770 1,200 1,195 
			  PT 770 575 1,175 480 490 
			 2005-06 FT 1,770 1,280 2,850 1,415 1,295 
			  PT 740 515 1,245 575 565 
			 2006-07 FT 1,700 1,215 2,635 1,350 1,215 
			  PT 675 505 970 440 450 
			 2007-08 FT 1,565 1,215 2,820 1,350 1,235 
			  PT 610 465 855 430 415 
		
	
	
		
			  Academic year  Mode of study  Salford  Stockport  Tameside  Trafford  Wigan 
			 1997-98 FT 805 1,580 850 1,370 1,140 
			  PT 370 305 180 315 490 
			 1998-99 FT 820 1,645 775 1,385 1,225 
			  PT 465 535 295 585 640 
			 1999-2000 FT 805 1,670 825 1,400 1,360 
			  PT 415 480 285 440 690 
			 2000-01 FT 825 1,575 855 1,425 1,260 
			  PT 405 445 250 430 595 
			 2001-02 FT 890 1,730 910 1,445 1,405 
			  PT 365 535 335 420 605 
			 2002-03 FT 970 1,860 1,015 1,590 1,390 
			  PT 350 500 405 415 750 
			 2003-04 FT 1,060 1,790 1,045 1,645 1,480 
			  PT 445 875 400 730 770 
			 2004-05 FT 1,000 1,840 1,050 1,680 1,450 
			  PT 500 675 425 630 730 
			 2005-06 FT 1,055 1,980 1,130 1,750 1,565 
			  PT 460 640 480 630 850 
			 2006-07 FT 995 1,845 1,030 1,630 1,505 
			  PT 355 490 440 495 705 
			 2007-08 FT 995 1,845 1,030 1,715 1,305 
			  PT 410 435 390 455 550 
			 (1) The table does not include entrants where local authority of the student cannot be established due to missing or invalid home postcodes. (2) Figures exclude the Open University due to inconsistencies in their coding of entrants across the time series.  Note: Figures are based on a snapshot basis as at 1 December and have been rounded to the nearest five.  Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) 
		
	
	There are a number of differences between the data gathered by UCAS on applicants and those gathered by HESA on entrants. Not all students apply through the UCAS system as they may apply directly to the institutions. UCAS does not cover part-time students, so these have been shown separately in table 2.

Higher Education: International Cooperation

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will place in the Library a copy of the report of the US/UK study group on US/UK higher education links.

David Lammy: The report of the US/UK study group on higher education and collaboration in a global context was commissioned by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister. The group included a number of university Vice-Chancellors and Presidents from the UK and USA, led by Professor John Sexton, President of New York University and Professor Rick Trainor, Prinicpal of King's College London. The report contains a very helpful analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of US/UK collaboration and recommends significant investment in a new programme of joint activities involving the US, UK and third country partners. Its recommendations are being considered in the context of the work on a framework for higher education over the next 10-15 years which is expected to be launched in the autumn. I have arranged for a copy of the report to be placed in the House Libraries.

Higher Education: Student Numbers

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what margin of flexibility on UK and EU undergraduate student numbers has been offered by the Higher Education Funding Council for England in each year since 1997.

David Lammy: The HEFCE funding model for teaching is constructed in broad terms and generally allows institutions to vary the number and mix of students within a tolerance band of plus/minus 5 per cent, of a standard reference point. Other specific controls (minimum Full Time Equivalents (FTE) required to satisfy the funding agreement) apply if institutions are awarded funded growth. Institutions are expected to deliver growth for which they have received additional funding, but are given two academic years to deliver a minimum target FTE student number. Institutions can vary between full-time, part-time, undergraduate and postgraduate provision.
	In addition, during the period 1997-98 through to 2001-02 another control on full-time undergraduate home and EU students applied known as the Maximum aggregate Student Number (MaSN). It related specifically to full-time undergraduate and postgraduate certificate in education home and EU students. Institutions were set a maximum number of students with margin which if exceeded resulted in holdback of grant.
	Since 2001-02 institutions have been allowed to vary their mix of students so long as they remain within their contract range which is generally plus/minus 5 per cent. but may be wider for some institutions that are in the process of migrating towards it.

Higher Education: Student Wastage

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many and what percentage of students in higher education left their course before completion in each year since 1997.

David Lammy: The latest information from the Performance Indicators in Higher Education published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) is shown in the table, which has been placed in the Library. Information is available on the proportion of students who are projected to neither obtain an award nor transfer to another institution; but the associated numbers have not been published. Figures for the 2007-08 academic year will be available in June 2010.

Innovation Fund

Dai Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when the £150 million Innovation Fund referred to in paragraph 35 of Building Britain's Future, column 7654, will be established; and how manufacturing firms will be able to obtain funding from that Fund.

David Lammy: The UK innovation investment fund will operate on a fund of funds structure which means it will not invest directly in companies, but rather invest in a small number of specialist technology funds that have the expertise and track record to invest directly in companies, in sectors such as ICT, life sciences, low carbon and advanced manufacturing. A fund of funds manager will be appointed during 2009 to manage the fund and make investments in underlying technology funds with the expertise and track record to invest directly in technology businesses.

Insolvency

Mark Oaten: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 29 June 2009,  Official Report, column 97W, on insolvency, what criteria are used to prioritise cases; and whether the effectiveness of the new scheme will be monitored.

Ian Lucas: holding answer 13 July 2009
	The answer of 29 June 2009 referred to company administrations. This answer encompasses company administration as well as other corporate failures. This is because the principles of prioritisation of cases apply to all company failures.
	The case prioritisation process takes into account a number of factors including, in particular, the nature of the financial losers and the impact on them; the content and level of complaints received; and the characteristics of the misconduct identified with an emphasis on prioritising cases of serious fraud and dishonesty.
	The duty and process of administrators to report to the Secretary of State for BIS on the conduct of directors and shadow directors of insolvent companies is not new. The process has already been subject to audit by my Department and will be periodically reviewed to ensure it remains fit for purpose.

Insolvency

Michael Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many companies went into administration in  (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency,  (b) Dacorum,  (c) Hertfordshire and  (d) England in each of the last five years.

Ian Lucas: Official statistics covering administrations and other corporate insolvency procedures are not currently available at sub-national level, or for England separately. Table 1 shows the number of administrations in England and Wales as a whole for the period requested.
	
		
			  Table 1 
			   Administrations-number of new cases 
			 2004 1,602 
			 2005 2,261 
			 2006(1) 3,560 
			 2007 2,512 
			 2008(2) 4,822 
			 (1) The figure for 2006 includes 844 separate, limited companies created and managed by Safe Solutions Accountancy Limited for which Grant Thornton was appointed administrator. (2) The figure for 2008 includes 729 separate managed service companies for which BDO Stoy Hayward was appointed administrator.

Insolvency

Michael Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many companies were declared insolvent in  (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency,  (b) Dacorum,  (c) Hertfordshire and  (d) England in each of the last five years.

Ian Lucas: Official statistics for corporate insolvencies are not currently available at sub-national level, or for England separately. Table 1 gives the number of corporate insolvencies, by type of procedure, in England and Wales as a whole for the period requested.
	
		
			  Table 1 
			   Compulsory liquidations  Creditors' voluntary liquidations( 1)  Receivership appointments( 2)  Administrations  Company voluntary arrangements 
			 2004 4,584 7,608 864 1,602 597 
			 2005 5,233 7,660 590 2,261 604 
			 2006 5,418 7,719 588 3,560 534 
			 2007 5,165 7,342 337 2,512 418 
			 2008 5,494 10,041 867 4,822 587 
			 (1) Excludes creditors' voluntary liquidations which follow administration. (2) Includes Law of Property Act receiverships. Receivership figures from 2007 are not entirely consistent with those for the earlier period.

Insolvency Service: Consultants

John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much the Insolvency Service spent on external consultants in each of the last five years.

Ian Lucas: The Insolvency Service executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills spent the following amounts on external consultants in each of the last five years.
	
		
			   Amount (£000) 
			 2004-05 0 
			 2005-06 38 
			 2006-07 0 
			 2007-08 34 
			 2008-09 210

Insolvency Service: Travel

John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much the Insolvency Service spent on taxis in each of the last five years.

Ian Lucas: The Insolvency Service executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is unable to extract details of taxi expenses. The service's policy is that public transport must be used in preference to taxis on all possible occasions. Sample data for one calendar month has been extracted which shows taxi costs of £1,510. This would correspond to annual taxi fares of approximately £20,000.

Insolvency Service: Travel

John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much the Insolvency Service spent on  (a) flights,  (b) hotel accommodation,  (c) rail travel and  (d) other travel and overnight subsistence expenses in each of the last five years.

Ian Lucas: The Insolvency Service executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills spent the following amounts on  (a) flights,  (b) hotel accommodation,  (c) rail travel and  (d) other travel and overnight subsistence expenses in each of the last five years.
	
		
			   Hotels  Air  Train  Staff subsistence  Total 
			 2004-05 409,579 9,827 425,664 481,516 1,326,585 
			 2005-06 531,962 15,795 568,138 503,666 1,619,561 
			 2006-07 745,162 95,277 871,712 633,616 2,345,766 
			 2007-08 856,095 67,237 1,145,946 720,298 2,789,577 
			 2008-09 1,173,460 109,993 1,319,879 747,372 3,350,703

Insolvency Service: Travel

John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much the Insolvency Service spent on first class  (a) rail and  (b) air travel in each of the last five years.

Ian Lucas: The Insolvency Service executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills spent the following amounts on rail travel in each of the last five years. Details of the class of travel used is only available from July 2006 when the Service began using thetrainline.com as its preferred supplier of rail bookings. Please see the following table:
	
		
			   First class  Standard class  Total 
			 2004-05 n/a n/a 425,664 
			 2005-06 n/a n/a 568,138 
			 2006-07 174,618 697,094 871,712 
			 2007-08 423,535 722,411 1,145,946 
			 2008-09 600,265 719,614 1,319,879 
		
	
	The Insolvency Service executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is unable to report the amount spent on first class air travel because it does not have details of individual flights. Air travel costs for the last five financial years were:
	
		
			   Air 
			 2004-05 9,827.00 
			 2005-06 15,795.00 
			 2006-07 95,277.00 
			 2007-08 67,327.27 
			 2008-09 109,993.00

It's Your Call Road Show

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the budget is of the It's Your Call road show for 2009-10; and which locations will be visited by the roadshow in 2009-10.

Patrick McFadden: The National Minimum Wage outreach campaign for 2009-10 will be run in conjunction with the Government's vulnerable workers campaign whose objective is to promote awareness of basic employment rights and the new Pay and Work Rights Helpline to vulnerable workers. The locations that will be visited during the campaign have not yet been finalised. The overall budget for the vulnerable workers campaign this year is £3 million, of which £215,000 is the expected cost for the outreach elements.

LDV

Gordon Banks: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 23 June 2009,  Official Report, column 870W, on LDV, if Ministers in his Department will meet the administrators of LDV Group to discuss the future of the business; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Lucas: holding answer 20 July 2009
	I have no plans to meet the administrator of LDV Group. We are continuing to monitor developments closely while offering all practical assistance to those affected. I understand that there are several potentially interested buyers including parties who are considering restarting manufacturing at Washwood Heath. The court appointed administrator is legally responsible for LDV and it would be inappropriate for Government to seek to influence his discussions with potential buyers.

Learndirect

David Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what his most recent assessment is of the effectiveness of Learndirect in developing skills required by employers in the current economic climate.

Kevin Brennan: Learndirect continues to play a vital role supporting employers and helping over 200,000 learners improve their skills and achieve qualifications through innovative use of online materials and support, together with delivery through a network of learning providers. Learndirect is forecast to exceed the targets on Skills for Life and NVQ learner achievements set for it by the Learning and Skills Council and double the number of learner starts on its Train to Gain contract this year.

Learning and Skills Council for England

Michael Gove: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will place in the Library a copy of the resignation letter of Mark Haysom, former Chairman of the Learning and Skills Council.

Kevin Brennan: Mark Haysom resigned from his position as chief executive of the Learning and Skills Council on 23 March 2009. His communication about his resignation was sent to Chris Banks, the LSC's National Chair. The Department will therefore ask the LSC to consider whether it would be appropriate to place a copy of the letter in the House Library, and to write to the hon. Gentleman.

Members: Correspondence

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when a reply will be sent to the letters dated 12 March and 13 October 2008 from the hon. Member for Torbay to the Minister of State for Trade, Investment and Consumer Affairs on sales of replica hand grenades.

Kevin Brennan: I responded to the hon. Member today. I apologise to the hon. Member for the unacceptable delay in responding to his letters. This was mainly due to an administrative error but also that the issues raised were cross-cutting and it was unclear as to which Department portfolio they fell under. I am taking steps to avoid a repeat of this error.

Members: Correspondence

Alex Salmond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to reply to the letter of 5 March 2009 from the right hon. Member for Banff and Buchan on his constituent Mr Watt of Cruden Bay.

Patrick McFadden: I apologise to the right hon. Member for the delay in responding. This is, in part, due to a substantial increase in volumes of correspondence caused by the current economic downturn. The hon. Member will receive a response as soon as possible.

Members: Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 30 March 2009, transferred from HM Treasury, PO reference: 1/70034/2009, on banks.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 18 June 2009
	 I apologise to the hon. Member for the delay in responding. This is, in part, due to a substantial increase in volumes of correspondence caused by the current economic downturn. The hon. Member will receive a response as soon as possible.

Members: Correspondence

Anne Main: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for St. Albans of 25 February 2009 on the St. Albans Business Summit.

Patrick McFadden: I apologise to the hon. Member for the delay in responding. This is, in part, due to a substantial increase in volumes of correspondence caused by the current economic downturn. The hon. Member will receive a response as soon as possible.

Members: Correspondence

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to reply to the letter from Mr. Vernon Holloway, a constituent of the hon. Member for New Forest West, of 15 May 2009 on small businesses.

Patrick McFadden: A reply was sent to Mr. Holloway on 26 June.

Members: Correspondence

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he will reply to the letter from the right hon. Member for West Derbyshire of 30 April 2009 on his constituent's business.

Patrick McFadden: The letter of 30 April from the right hon. Member was transferred to Her Majesty's Treasury for response. Confirmation of this transfer was sent to the right hon. Member on 5 June.

Members: Correspondence

John Baron: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 1 June 2009, Official Report, column 61W, when he plans to respond to the letters from the hon. Member for Billericay of 26 February and 26 March 2009 on his constituent, Mr. Piechuta.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 16 July 2009
	I apologise to the hon. Member for the unacceptable delay in responding to his letter. This was due to an administrative error. The hon. Member will receive a response shortly.

Members: Correspondence

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when the Secretary of State plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Beaconsfield  (a) of 12 February 2009, on behalf of his constituent Mr. Wilkinson,  (b) of 24 February 2009, on behalf of his constituent Mr. Booroff and  (c) of 12 March 2009 on behalf of his constituent Mr. Woods.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 20 July 2009
	I apologise to the hon. and learned Member for the delay in responding to his correspondence. My noble Friend, the Minister with responsibility for economic competitiveness, small business and enterprise will respond shortly to the three outstanding letters.

Members: Correspondence

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State plans to respond to the letter from the right hon. Member for West Derbyshire of 17 March 2009 on business difficulties.

Patrick McFadden: I apologise to the right hon. Member for the unacceptable delay in responding, he will receive a response shortly.

Members: Correspondence

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to reply to the letter from the right hon. Member for West Derbyshire of 6 February 2009 concerning problems with a constituent's business.

Patrick McFadden: I apologise to the right hon. Member for the delay in responding. He will receive a reply shortly.

Members: Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the Answer of 1 June 2009,  Official Report, column 61W, on Members: correspondence, when the relevant Minister plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Chelmsford of 27 February 2009 on his constituent, Mr Paul Cook of Chelmsford; and what the reason is for the time taken to reply.

Patrick McFadden: I apologise to the hon. Member for the continuing delay in responding. My noble Friend, the Minister with responsibility for economic competitiveness, small business and enterprise, will respond shortly.

Met Office

Nick Harvey: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations from private sector weather companies have been submitted to the Trading Funds review of the Met Office.

Rosie Winterton: The operational efficiency programme and trading funds assessment teams have heard the views of over 20 private sector stakeholders, including customers, suppliers and competitors of the trading funds. These representations have related to both the Meteorological Office specifically but also often to trading funds in general and include meetings with private sector weather companies.

Met Office

Nick Harvey: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the  (a) terms of reference and  (b) membership are of the Met Office Trading Funds Review team.

Rosie Winterton: The HM Treasury operational efficiency programme (OEP) Ministry of Defence asset review team's terms of reference have been placed in the Library of the House.
	This OEP review team comprises HM Treasury, Ministry of Defence, shareholder executive and senior management of the Meteorological Office.

Met Office: Cost Effectiveness

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the Shareholder Executive plans to meet the Office of Fair Trading in relation to the Operational Efficiency Programme review of the Met Office.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 7 July 2009
	The Shareholder Executive works as part of the HM Treasury Operational Efficiency Programme Ministry of Defence Asset Review Team. There are no current plans to meet with the Office of Fair Trading in relation to the Operational Efficiency Programme review of the Met Office.

Minimum Wage: Publicity

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which locations the Minimum Wage Battle Bus visited in 2009; and on what dates those visits took place.

Patrick McFadden: The national minimum wage trailer tour began on 19 November 2008 and ended on 7 February 2009. Locations visited during the eight week campaign are as follows:
	
		
			   Location 
			 19 November 2008 Cardiff 
			 20 November 2008 Bristol 
			 21 November 2008 Newport 
			 22 November 2008 Swansea 
			 26 November 2008 Stirling 
			 27 November 2008 Kilmarnock 
			 28 November 2008 Edinburgh 
			 29 - 30 November 2008 Glasgow 
			 10-11 December 2008 Leeds 
			 12 December 2008 Huddersfield 
			 13-14 December 2008 Sheffield 
			 7 January 2009 Norwich 
			 8 January 2009 Peterborough 
			 9-10 January 2009 Leicester 
			 11 January 2009 Derby 
			 14-15 January 2009 Liverpool 
			 16 January 2009 Blackburn 
			 17-18 January 2009 Manchester 
			 21 January 2009 Coventry 
			 22-23 January 2009 Nottingham 
			 24-25 January 2009 Birmingham 
			 28-29 January 2009 Newcastle 
			 30-31 January 2009 Middlesbrough 
			 1 February 2009 Sunderland 
			 4 February 2009 Plymouth 
			 5 February 2009 Portsmouth 
			 6 February 2009 London (East) 
			 7 February 2009 London (North West)

Money Laundering Regulations 2007

Bob Neill: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether any  (a) impact and  (b) small firms assessment has been produced in relation to the Office of Fair Trading's plans to require compulsory registration of all estate agents under the Money Laundering Regulations 2007.

Kevin Brennan: The Office of Fair Trading has been the anti-money laundering supervisory authority for estate agents since December 2007. As Her Majesty's Treasury had carried out a regulatory impact assessment before implementation of the Money Laundering Regulations 2007, the Office of Fair Trading did not produce a separate impact assessment or small firms' assessment for the registration of estate agents for money laundering purposes, when deciding to require compulsory registration. In deciding upon compulsory registration, the OFT was concerned to minimise the burdens on business and has framed the information requirements and registration fee accordingly.

Money Lenders

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  how many calls the national illegal money lender helpline has received from each region in each month since it was established;
	(2)  how many calls made to the national illegal money lender helpline have  (a) resulted and  (b) assisted in the arrest or prosecution of an illegal money lender in each month since its establishment;
	(3)  how many staff have been employed on the national illegal money lender helpline in each month since its establishment;
	(4)  how much funding has been  (a) allocated and  (b) spent on (i) establishing the national illegal money lender helpline and (ii) operating the helpline in each month since its establishment.

Kevin Brennan: holding answer 13 July 2009
	Since 1 March 2009 to 30 June to 2009 the total number of calls received for all regions via the national 0300 555 2222 hotline was 516.
	The total numbers of calls received by some of the IML teams has been filtered (f) to indicate the number of calls received that gave actionable intelligence. However, some of the teams have maintained regional numbers to ensure a golden thread ensues for previous poster and media campaigns:
	
		
			   March  April  May  June  July 
			 South West 37 7 4 20 4 
			 East Midlands 72 26 29 33 9 
			 London 33 52 57 58 14 
			 North East (f) 2 3 4 4 3 
			 Wales (f) 6 3 0 3 2 
			 Scotland (f) 4 2 2 1 0 
			 Central England (f)(1) 22 11 12 23 3 
			 (1) South East, North West, East of England, Yorkshire and Humberside 
		
	
	Of the 519 calls received by the national hotline number the following assisted in the arrest or proceeding to the prosecutions of illegal money lenders.
	
		
			   Detail 
			 North East Three arrests have followed from calls received on the national hotline number. None have yet proceeded to a prosecution. 
			 South West No calls have yet resulted in arrest or prosecution, all are still ongoing investigations. 
			 East Midlands 10 arrests have followed from calls to the hotline; none have yet proceeded to a prosecution. 
			 London One arrest, 16 calls have initiated ongoing investigations not yet proceeded to prosecution. One call led to re-arrest of an illegal lender on bail. Three matters were linked to ongoing organised crime. SOCA, Anti-Terrorism Unit, and the Metropolitan Police Service engaged as a result. 
			 Wales Eight arrests have been made, all are ongoing cases. None have been prosecuted in such a short space of time. 
			 Scotland Three of the calls have initiated investigations. Any investigations which have been instigated as a result of these calls are still ongoing. 
			 Central England(1) 12 arrests, charges have been laid against three and inquiries are on going with the others. 
			 (1) South East, North West, East of England, Yorkshire and Humberside 
		
	
	All calls are answered by enforcement officers already employed within the teams. No additional staff were employed to operate the national hotline number.
	The national number is not a helpline but a hotline for victims to report a loan shark in confidence. The single national number was established to make it simpler to report loan sharking and to create greater connectivity between regions and increased cross-border operations. Therefore the only direct costs resulting from setting up and running the national hotline are
	(a) the cost of installing the hotline number = £200; and
	(b) the quarterly rental cost for the hotline number = £10.
	The easily recognisable number itself was free. The geographical set-up was free.

Motor Vehicles: Manufacturing Industries

Mark Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the monetary value is of loans underwritten by the Automotive Assistance Programme which have been drawn down by businesses.

Ian Lucas: Projects in the pipeline seeking loan guarantees are worth at least £2.4 billion with total Government support sought of around £1.45 billion.

Motor Vehicles: Manufacturing Industries

Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the Answer of 9 July 2009,  Official Report, column 989W, on motor vehicles: manufacturing industries, what estimate he has made of the maximum number of car purchases that can be funded by the £300 million allocated by his Department to the car scrappage scheme.

Ian Lucas: Under the scrappage scheme, the Government provide £1,000 per vehicle. Therefore, the maximum number of vehicles that could be funded would be 300,000. However, the total number will be slightly less than that since a small portion of the £300 million will be used to cover monitoring and administration costs.

Motor Vehicles: Manufacturing Industries

Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the Answer of 9 July 2009,  Official Report, column 989W, on motor vehicles: manufacturing industries, how many of the 94,000 orders for new vehicles qualify for Government funding under the car scrappage scheme.

Ian Lucas: The figure for total orders under the scrappage scheme is adjusted each week to take account of any errors or cancellations in previous orders. Therefore, we anticipate that, subject to any future minor adjustments of this sort, all the orders would qualify for Government funding. Over 121,700 orders for new vehicles have now been taken.

Motorsport Development UK

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the findings were of the evaluation undertaken by GHK Consulting of the Learning Grid and other Motorsport Development UK initiatives; and whether he plans to publish the report.

Ian Lucas: An evaluation has been commissioned by the East Midlands Regional Development Agency (EMDA) and I am expecting to receive a copy of the final report shortly. I will consider the arrangements for publication when I have read the report.

National Internship Scheme

David Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what his most recent estimate is of the number of internships likely to be established under the National Internship Scheme.

David Lammy: The Government are committed to helping new graduates through these tough times. Internships offer graduates the opportunity both to apply their learning in a working situation and to build the work ready skills they will need for permanent employment. Our aim was to generate at least 5,000 additional internships for new graduates this autumn, many of them through the new Graduate Talent Pool. We have been working with businesses, universities and partners from the public and third sectors and have already achieved more than 5,000 committed places.

National Skills Academies: Finance

Edward Timpson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether another funding round for national skills academies is planned to take place.

Kevin Brennan: holding answer 20 July 2009
	 An announcement will be made as soon as is practicable.

National Vocational Qualifications: Construction

Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  how many people on Government-funded National Vocational Qualification courses in the construction industry left the course early in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many people applied for Government-funded National Vocational Qualification courses in the construction industry in each of the last five years.

Kevin Brennan: Table 1 shows the number of Learning and Skills Council-funded enrolments on NVQs within the construction, planning and the built environment sector subject area, from 2005-06 to 2007-08. Information is not available on a consistent basis prior to 2005-06.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of NVQ enrolments within the construction, planning and the built environment sector subject area, 2005/06 to 2007/08 
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 Further education 22,400 22,200 23,500 
			 Work-based learning 70,600 67,600 65,700 
			 Train to Gain 4,100 32,400 52,700 
			  Notes: 1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred. 2. Figures include FE and WBL enrolments and TTG starts. 3. TTG began in April 2006, hence 2005-06 contains only part-year figures.   Source: Individualised Learner Record. 
		
	
	Table 2 shows the number of people who withdrew from an NVQ in the construction, planning and the built environment sector subject area, from 2005-06 to 2007-08. Information is not available on a consistent basis prior to 2005-06.
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of NVQ Enrolments within the construction, planning and the built environment sector subject area which were withdrawn from, 2003-04 to 2007-08 
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 Further education 2,200 1,800 1,700 
			 Work-based learning 10,500 9,100 9,500 
			 Train to Gain 200 600 1,800 
			  Notes: 1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred. 2. These figures do not include a small number of learners who have temporarily withdrawn due to an agreed break in learning. 3. These figures do not include learners who have transferred to a new learning aim with the same provider.  Source: Individualised Learner Record.

New Businesses

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to encourage the establishment of new businesses in deprived areas.

Rosie Winterton: This Department supports people setting up new businesses through the Business Link service. Information and advice is available to all new businesses through the 'Starting A Business' product. The 'Intensive Start Up Support' product provides additional assistance to people setting up new businesses in deprived areas, including those from groups that are underrepresented in self employment and business ownership. The Government also help Community Development Finance Institutions assist individuals in deprived areas who are unable to access finance from commercial banks. More widely, the Government support Local Authority action to increase levels of enterprise, through the Working Neighbourhood Fund and the Local Enterprise Growth Initiative.

Non-Domestic Rates

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of  (a) households and  (b) businesses in (i) Essex and (ii) Castle Point which will be liable for payment of the levy proposed in the Digital Britain White Paper.

Patrick McFadden: This Department has made no specific estimate of the number of  (a) households and  (b) businesses in (i) Essex and (ii) Castle Point liable for payment of the proposed levy proposed in the Digital Britain White Paper.
	Ofcom estimates that there are 612,037 fixed lines in Essex. As the analysis was not carried out at boundary level, rather constituency and county level, Ofcom does not have estimates for Castle Point. We have recognised that those on the lowest incomes might have difficulty paying the fixed line levy and that is why we have confirmed that those on social telephony schemes will be exempt. The social telephony schemes are available to those on income support, income-based Job Seeker's Allowance Employment Support Allowance (income rated) or Guaranteed Pensions Credit and should be an accurate indication of ability to pay.

North West Regional Development Agency: Finance

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to which projects in Morecambe and Lunesdale constituency the North West Regional Development Agency has provided funding in the last five years.

Rosie Winterton: The information is as follows:
	
		
			  Name  Description  Total NWDA investment (£) 
			 SFI Grants to Local Businesses SFI grants to local businesses 587,036 
			 Trimpell Tip Middleton Wood Ph1 Environmental improvement works to reclaim a former industrial site and tip at Trimpell Tip Middleton Wood 580,368 
			 Midland Hotel, Morecambe Redevelopment of Midland Hotel, Morecambe 4,070,523 
			 The Whoop Hall, Burrow, Kirkby Lonsdale Refurbishment of redundant rooms to create four letting bedrooms 6,221 
			 Clawthorpe Hall, Carnforth Conversion of part of Clawthorpe Hall to create offices and workspace units 63,300 
			 Carnforth Market Town: Winter Promotion Scheme Partnership launch event and retail promotion of Carnforth retail centre 42,667 
			 St. Martins College Arts Campus: Feasibility study Feasibility of development of a new campus, located in Morecambe, which will specialise in the Arts 28,964 
			 Lancaster Vision Strengthening Morecambe's West End Retail Core A number of public realm improvements to Yorkshire Street, Heysham Road, West Street and Regent Road, Morecambe 20,000 
			 Winter Gardens Morecambe Feasibility work only to allow for HLF bid 15,000 
			 Winter Gardens, Morecambe Detailed Planning Stage-Various technical reports to support funding applications 298,381 
			 Seaside Square: site clearance Site clearance and improvements to land adjacent to the Midland hotel 226,253

Offical Visits: Glasgow

John Mason: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he plans to visit Glasgow on official business during the summer adjournment.

Patrick McFadden: No BIS Ministers are planning to visit Glasgow this summer.

Overseas Trade: Israel

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what information his Department holds on the extent of UK commercial operations in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory in the last five years.

Ian Lucas: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills does not hold information on UK commercial operations in Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Overseas Trade: Israel

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether UK Trade and Investment has provided any  (a) financial assistance and  (b) advice to UK companies trading with or investing in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory in the last 12 months.

Ian Lucas: UK Trade and Investment has not provided financial assistance or advice to UK companies within the last 12 months wishing to trade with or invest in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Overseas Trade: Israel

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will commission research into the level of investment in the UK by  (a) companies owned by Israeli settlers in the occupied Palestinian territory and  (b) companies located in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Ian Lucas: The Department has no plans to commission such research.

Overseas Trade: Israel

Phyllis Starkey: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to ensure that UK companies operating in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories are aware of their obligations under  (a) the Geneva conventions,  (b) the Hague regulations and  (c) other international law.

Ian Lucas: HM Government have not offered support or advice to UK companies operating in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. We consider all settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories to be illegal under international law.

Parental Leave: Bexley

David Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of people in  (a) Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency and  (b) the London Borough of Bexley who took (i) paternity and (ii) maternity leave in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Patrick McFadden: The most recent estimates of take-up of maternity leave are based on Maternity Rights and Mother's Employment Decisions (published 2007). The survey is based on a random sample of mothers who had a baby between February and May 2006.
	Of mothers in paid work, all took at least some of their entitlement to maternity leave.
	Up-to-date estimates of fathers taking paternity leave are from the Maternity and Paternity Rights and Benefits in Britain: Survey of Parents, conducted in 2005. 93 per cent. of fathers took some time off around the time of the birth. Of the 93 per cent. who took some time off, 79 per cent. took paternity leave. (The survey is based on a random sample of mothers who had a baby in December 2003 and their partners).
	The Department does not collect data on take-up of maternity and paternity leave at constituency level.

Parental Leave: Hemel Hempstead

Michael Penning: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate his Department has made of the number of people from low income families in Hemel Hempstead constituency who took  (a) paternity and  (b) maternity leave in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Patrick McFadden: The most recent estimates of take-up of maternity leave are based on Maternity Rights and Mother's Employment Decisions (published 2007). The survey is based on a random sample of mothers who had a baby between February and May 2006.
	Of mothers in paid work, all took at least some of their entitlement to maternity leave.
	Up-to-date estimates of fathers taking paternity leave are from the Maternity and Paternity Rights and Benefits in Britain: Survey of Parents, conducted in 2005. 93 per cent. of fathers took some time off around the time of the birth. Of the 93 per cent. who took some time off, 79 per cent. took paternity leave. (The survey is based on a random sample of mothers who had a baby in December 2003 and their partners.)
	The Department does not collect data on low income families so has not estimated the number of low income families which have taken up paternity or maternity leave.
	The Department does not collect data on take-up of maternity and paternity leave at constituency level.

Parental Leave: Tamworth

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate his Department has made of the number of people from low income households in Tamworth constituency who took  (a) paternity and  (b) maternity leave in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Patrick McFadden: The most recent estimates of take-up of maternity leave are based on Maternity Rights and Mother's Employment Decisions (published 2007). The survey is based on a random sample of mothers who had a baby between February and May 2006.
	Of mothers in paid work, all took at least some of their entitlement to maternity leave.
	Up-to-date estimates of fathers taking paternity leave are from the Maternity and Paternity Rights and Benefits in Britain: Survey of Parents, conducted in 2005. 93 per cent. of fathers took some time off around the time of the birth. Of the 93 per cent. who took some time off, 79 per cent. took paternity leave (the survey is based on a random sample of mothers who had a baby in December 2003 and their partners).
	The Department does not collect data on low income families so has not estimated the number of low income families which have taken up paternity or maternity leave. The Department does not collect data on take-up of maternity and paternity leave at constituency level.

Parliamentary Questions: Government Responses

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when the Minister of State for Trade, Investment and Consumer Affairs plans to respond to question 245130, tabled by the hon. Member for Torbay on 17 December 2008, on correspondence on sales of replica hand grenades.

Kevin Brennan: holding answer 30 April 2009
	I am responding to the hon. Member today.

Pleural Plaques

Michael Clapham: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate his Department made of its potential liabilities arising from compensation claims from those with pleural plaques in advance of the House of Lords judgment on pleural plaques compensation of October 2007.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 6 July 2009
	The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (then the Department for Trade and Industry) had estimated potential liabilities of £22.5 million in relation to British Shipbuilder-related cases of plural plaques. This was shown in the Department's Resource Accounts 2006-07 as a contingent liability.

Post Offices

Andrew George: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many post office branches have closed in each network change plan area following adoption of the network change plan for that area.

Patrick McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, managing director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member. Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Post Offices: Nottinghamshire

John Mann: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many post office branches there were in Nottinghamshire in each of the last 30 years.

Patrick McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, managing director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member.
	Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Post Offices: Wales

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many Post Office branches in each constituency in Wales have closed in each year since 1997; and how many such branches have been replaced by Outreach services.

Patrick McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, managing director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member.
	Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Post Offices: Wales

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of people in each constituency in Wales who lived further than two kilometres from a post office in each of the last five years.

Patrick McFadden: Compliance with the access criteria is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, managing director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member.
	Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Postal Services

Tom Watson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many Royal Mail post boxes are located by reference to a  (a) postcode and  (b) grid reference.

Patrick McFadden: This is an operational matter for Royal Mail. I have therefore asked the chief executive, Adam Crozier, to reply direct to the hon. Member. Copies of the letter will be place in the Libraries of the House.

Postal Services

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the quality of postal services in remote rural areas compared to those in towns and cities.

Patrick McFadden: Postcomm, the industry regulator, monitors Royal Mail's quality of service performance in all postcode areas on a quarterly basis. Postcomm also commissions an annual survey of residential and small and medium-sized enterprise customers, which involves asking questions of customers in rural and deep rural areas about their use of mail services and how satisfied they are as senders and recipients of mail.
	In the latest 2008 survey, all respondents were asked to rate their overall satisfaction with Royal Mail on a scale of one to 10 (10 representing extremely satisfied and one extremely dissatisfied). The total sample gave Royal Mail a mean score of 8.02. A breakdown of the sample showed that deep rural customers gave Royal Mail a higher mean score of 8.47.
	More information can be found on Postcomm's website:
	http://www.psc.gov.uk/about-the-mail-market/customer-needs-survey.html

Publicity: Finance

Philip Hammond: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much the former Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills spent on management of its corporate identity.

Patrick McFadden: In 2007-08 the Department spent an estimated £38,759.49 on managing its corporate identity. This includes development of the logo, branding guidelines, signposts, display panels and stationery.

Redundancy

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many employers in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point sought advice on redundancy issues from his Department in (i) the latest period for which figures are available and (ii) the same period 12 months previously.

Patrick McFadden: Employers are able to seek advice on redundancy issues from my Department via the Business Link helpline and the website, the ACAS helpline and the Redundancy payments Service helpline. The available figures are set out in the following table, except for calls to the Redundancy Payments Service helpline, which are not categorised or recorded by group:
	
		
			  ACAS helpline  May 2008( 1)  May 2009 
			 Percentage of total calls from employers that were about redundancy issues. 19.9 27.2 
			 Business Link Helpline (2)- (2)- 
			 Business Link April 2008 April 2009 
			 Guidance (3)28,050 (3)68,740 
			 Redundancy tool 2,487 4,004 
			 Redundancy calculator (2)- 39,474 
			 1 Relates to two weeks only, due to the introduction of new technology 2 No data available 3 Visits  Note: Project began in Sept 2008

Regulation

John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many of the 106 regulatory conflicts identified by the Better Regulation Executive in the last financial year have been resolved; and what timetable has been set for resolving the remainder.

Ian Lucas: 106 of the 270 suggestions received on the Government's better regulation website
	www.betterregulation.gov.uk
	in 2008-09 were classified by the members of the public submitting the ideas as involving a conflict in regulations. On close examination these may, or may not, involve actual regulatory conflicts.
	Each idea submitted is considered individually by the relevant Government Department or Departments and an official response is sent to the originator and published on the website within 90 days. Data are not held centrally on which of the ideas classified by the originators as regulatory conflicts are actual regulatory conflicts and this information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Royal Mail

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans he has for the future ownership of Royal Mail; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 7 July 2009
	Market conditions have made it impossible to conclude the process to identify a partner on terms that we can be confident would secure value for the taxpayer.
	There is therefore no prospect in current circumstances of achieving the objectives of the Postal Services Bill. When market conditions change we will return to the issue.
	We remain convinced that Hooper's combined package offers the best chance of securing the universal postal service while protecting Royal Mail pensions.

Royal Mail

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to the Electoral Commission's publication of registered donations to political parties in the first quarter of 2009, for what reason Royal Mail donated £3,000 to the Labour Party.

Patrick McFadden: This is a matter for Royal Mail but I understand from the company that as a part of its commercial activities, it has, over the last 12 months, made donations to all the major political parties in the form of sponsorship of receptions at their Scottish conferences.

Royal Mail

David Drew: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent representations he has received on the working practices of the Royal Mail with specific reference to  (a) their use of roads in rural and semi-rural areas,  (b) access for vehicles to assist delivery,  (c) payment of overtime and  (d) arrangements to cover sick leave.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 20 July 2009
	Royal Mail working practices are operational matters for Royal Mail. My Department has not received specific representations on these issues.

Science and Technology Facilities Council: Finance

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills for what reasons the Science and Technology Facilities Council is  (a) experiencing a budgetary shortfall and  (b) planning a programme of funding delays and reductions for 2009-10.

David Lammy: holding answer 12 June 2009
	 The science and technology facilities council continually adjusts and reprioritises its funding, for example to cover the adverse effect of exchange rate fluctuations on the level of its subscriptions to international organisations.
	The STFC recently carried out such an exercise; its press notice of 25 June sets out the outcome of its most recent process of prioritisation.

Scientists: International Cooperation

Dai Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps the Government plan to take to use UK scientific expertise in support of the recommendation for a co-ordinated approach in the field of global weapons of mass destruction knowledge, proliferation and scientist engagements in the L'Aquila declaration of 9 July 2009.

David Kidney: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government contributed to and fully endorse the announcement made by the G8 at L'Aquila. The UK's commitment to the G8 Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction (launched at the G8 summit at Kananaskis in June 2002) is delivered by the UK's Global Threat Reduction Programme (GTRP). The Foreign and Commonwealth Office hold the overall policy lead for GTRP, but the nuclear and radiological components of the programme are managed by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). DECC's portfolio of GTRP programmes includes the Closed Nuclear Cities Partnership, which provided assistance to address the knowledge proliferation risks posed by unemployed or under-employed nuclear weapons scientists and technicians in closed nuclear cities in Russia and various Institutes of Nuclear Physics in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Georgia and Belarus.
	This UK collaborative programme draws on UK scientific and technical expertise in both the public and private sector and provides:
	finance for commercial civil sector projects;
	training for personnel including study tours to share the UK's experiences of nuclear industry, defence industry downsizing and restructuring of Government funded laboratories to commercialise research and development and create spin-out businesses;
	assistance in the establishment of commercial businesses with Russian etc. and Western foreign enterprises;
	support to business development agencies and commercialisation units for sustainable economic development in the Closed Nuclear Cities and various Institutes of Nuclear Physics.
	The Ministry of Defence, which manages the chemical and biological parts of GTRP, has a small but developing programme of redirection and engagement in the biological sciences in Former Soviet Union countries and elsewhere which engages world class UK scientific expertise from the Health Protection Agency, Veterinary Laboratory Agency, Food and Environment Research Agency and other such bodies.
	Further details of these programmes are contained in the Global Threat Reduction Programme Annual Report which is available in the House Library and available from:
	http://www.berr.gov.uk./energy/non-proliferation/global-threat-reduction/index.html

Small Businesses: Staffordshire

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what support his Department has offered to small businesses in  (a) Tamworth constituency and  (b) Staffordshire during the economic downturn.

Rosie Winterton: The Government are committed to ensuring that a comprehensive range of assistance is available to businesses affected by the economic downturn. The support available includes a package of schemes to address the cash flow, credit and capital needs of small businesses under the Real Help for Business campaign. This includes Government guaranteed lending under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme as well as loan funding from the Advantage Transition Bridge Fund which is administered by Advantage West Midlands (AWM). AWM also administers other schemes providing financial support for eligible firms including the Grant for Business Investment and the Grant for Research and Development.
	Details of funding provided to businesses in Tamworth and Staffordshire under national initiatives are not available. Financial support provided to businesses in Staffordshire by AWM over the last six months is as follows:
	(i) Eight businesses have received offers of Grant for Business Investment totalling £564,671;
	(ii) Three businesses have received offers of Grant for Research and Development totalling £327,880;
	(iii) 11 businesses have received loans from Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs) totalling £295,000;
	(iv) Six businesses have received offers of loans totalling £510,000 from the Advantage Transition Bridge Fund;
	(v) Four businesses have received investment from the region's venture capital funds totalling £727,060.
	These figures include £75,000 CDFI funding for three businesses in Tamworth and £100,000 from venture capital funds for one business in the town.
	Companies can also receive advice including free business Health Checks from Business Link. The Health Check looks at the whole of a business operation including strategy, markets, productivity, skills and finance.
	In the year to March 2009 Business Link West Midlands provided the following support to businesses in Tamworth:
	(i) In-depth reviews with 121 businesses and skills reviews with a further 58 businesses
	(ii) Information support to 825 businesses
	The support provided to businesses in the rest of Staffordshire in the year to March 2009 was as follows:
	(i) In-depth business reviews with 1,753 businesses and skills reviews with a further 682 businesses.
	(ii) information support to 9,167 businesses
	Business Link also provided information about starting a business to 319 individuals in Tamworth and 3,035 in the rest of Staffordshire, helping 31 businesses in Tamworth and 396 in the rest of the county to start during the year.
	Business Link has also run business clinics and credit crunch and other events throughout Staffordshire. UK Trade and Investment assistance with exporting is provided by through the Staffordshire International Trade Team based at the North Staffordshire Chamber.

Social Work: Higher Education

Michael Gove: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many  (a) applicants and  (b) successful applicants there were for General Social Care Council-accredited social work degree courses in each of the last 10 years.

David Lammy: Prior to 2005, parallel to the main UCAS system administering admissions for social work degrees, UCAS operated the Social Work Admissions System (SWAS), for entry on to diplomas in social work. Entry to diplomas in social work was last available for 2004 entry-these were replaced by three-year social work degree courses or two-year postgraduate diplomas. The admissions for the degrees and some postgraduate masters diplomas were absorbed into mainstream UCAS for 2005 entry. The figures in the table include applicants to full-time first degree courses only.
	From 2002 entry, UCAS switched from using the Standard Academic Classification of Subjects (SCAS) to the Joint Academic Coding System (JACS).
	The information is in the following table:
	
		
			  UK domiciled applicants and accepted applicants to full-time first degree social work courses in UK institutions 1998-2008 
			  Academic year of entry  Applicants  Accepts 
			 1998 5,852 1,782 
			 1999 5,901 2,045 
			 2000 5,938 2,180 
			 2001 5,787 2,343 
			 2002 5,766 2,458 
			  ( Change in coding of subjects )   
			 2003 7,443 3,184 
			 2004 11,768 5,036 
			  ( SWAS merged with main UCAS system )   
			 2005 15,215 5,820 
			 2006 15,720 6,152 
			 2007 17,025 6,821 
			 2008 16,828 7,308 
		
	
	Applicants data refers to applicants making at least one choice to a full-time first degree course in social work (applicants applying solely to higher national certificates, higher national diplomas, foundation degrees or postgraduate masters diplomas are not counted).
	Accepted applicant data refers to applicants being accepted to a full-time first degree course in social work.

Spaceflight

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment his Department has made of the merits of establishing a space agency for the UK; and what estimate he has made of  (a) the likely cost and  (b) the number of staff that would be required for the functioning of such an agency.

David Lammy: holding answer 8 June 2009
	 The Minister for Science and Innovation has discussed with the British National Space Centre partnership to determine whether a formal assessment should be undertaken on the structure of BNSC. As a result, a public consultation on how UK civil space activities can best be funded and managed will be launched formally on 22 July to take on board the wider views of stakeholders and the general public.

Strategic Investment Fund

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  whether  (a) charities and  (b) public sector bodies will be eligible for (i) grants and (ii) loans under the Strategic Investment Fund;
	(2)  when he expects to publish plans for the allocation of funding from the Strategic Investment Fund;
	(3)  what categories of businesses will be eligible for  (a) grants and  (b) loans under the Strategic Investment Fund.

Patrick McFadden: The aim of the Strategic Investment Fund is to help ensure that the UK remains well positioned to emerge from the economic downturn in a globally competitive position. Although the SIF it is not a fund to which businesses, charities or public sector organisations can apply directly, BIS seeks and continues to welcome a broad engagement with business and other organisations to understand opportunities and challenges they face as well as the areas in which Government action can have a bigger impact.
	Investments will be prioritised on where there are economic opportunities for UK-based businesses and where government action can make a real and beneficial impact. All proposals will be appraised to ensure that they have a clear rationale, that Government intervention will make a difference and that they provide good value for money in delivering longer term benefits to the UK wide economy. The project portfolio will seek to ensure that funds are complementing markets and that interventions are prioritised on the basis of scale of impact on the economy through addressing barriers to growth in areas of opportunity.
	There are number of proposals currently being considered to help deliver the Government's strategy as set out in the 'Building Britain's Future - New Industry New Jobs' document published on 20 April 2009. Within the context of that document the Government will be bringing forward more detailed statements of policy in the weeks and months ahead. A number of these may draw on the Strategic Investment Fund.

Strategic Investment Fund

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what criteria his Department will use to determine what spending under the Strategic Investment Fund will qualify as low-carbon spending.

Patrick McFadden: The first investments from the £250 million of funding allocated for low carbon economic development were set out in the Low Carbon Industrial Strategy on 15 July. All funding will be allocated, examining the costs and benefits, consistent with Green Book criteria.

Students: Hampshire

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people aged  (a) 21 years and under and  (b) over 21 years in each socio-economic group who were resident in (i) Test Valley borough and (ii) the City of Southampton attended university in each of the last five years.

David Lammy: The number of full-time undergraduate enrolments at UK higher education institutions from Test Valley census district is given in table 1, and from Southampton local authority in table 2. Enrolments are given by socio-economic classification and by age group (under 21 and 21 and over). Socio-economic class information is not available for part time higher education students.
	Figures for the 2008-09 academic year will be available from the Higher Education Statistics Agency in January 2010.
	
		
			  Table 1: Full-time undergraduate enrolments from the Test Valley census district( 1)  by age and socio-economic classification( 2) , UK higher education institutions, academic years 2003-04 to 2007-08 
			   2003 - 04  2004 - 05  2005 - 06  2006 - 07  2007 - 08 
			  Socio-economic classification  21  21+  21  21+  21  21+  21  21+  21  21+ 
			 Higher managerial and professional occupations 290 15 380 65 370 115 400 125 420 140 
			 Lower managerial and professional occupations 240 25 335 70 330 120 340 120 350 115 
			 Intermediate occupations 135 25 190 50 180 65 180 65 175 70 
			 Small employers and own account workers 35 10 60 20 75 20 75 25 65 30 
			 Lower supervisory and technical occupations 30 5 35 10 40 15 50 15 45 20 
			 Semi-routine occupations 45 20 75 35 85 40 85 45 70 50 
			 Routine occupations 25 5 30 15 30 15 25 15 20 20 
			 Never worked and long-term unemployed(3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Total known 805 105 1,105 270 1,115 395 1,150 405 1,145 445 
			 Missing(4) 440 575 185 435 215 280 215 230 235 205 
			 (1) The table does not include enrolments where the census district of the student cannot be established due to missing or home postcodes. (2) This field collects the socio-economic classification of students participating in HE if 21 or over at the start of their course or parental classification if under 21. (3) Information is not comprehensively collected on the Never worked and long-term unemployed category for students. Students who fit this group are usually classed as having missing information. (4) Covers students whose socio-economic classification was missing or not classified: not classified includes occupations which were inadequately described, not classifiable or unstated.  Note: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded up or down to the nearest five, so components may not sum to totals.  Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Full-time undergraduate enrolments from the Southampton  local authority( 1)  by age an d socio-economic classification( 2) , UK higher education institutions, academic years 2003-04 to 2007-08 
			   2003 - 04  2004 - 05  2005 - 06  2006 - 07  2007 - 08 
			  Socio-economic classification  21  21+  21  21+  21  21+  21  21+  21  21+ 
			 Higher managerial and professional occupations 185 30 255 70 275 105 260 125 265 125 
			 Lower managerial and professional occupations 255 85 320 170 325 195 320 205 330 205 
			 Intermediate occupations 130 85 160 145 160 160 150 160 170 135 
			 Small employers and own account workers 70 15 95 40 85 50 80 55 95 40 
			 Lower supervisory and technical occupations 55 10 70 40 60 30 45 40 55 40 
			 Semi-routine occupations 115 60 140 95 140 115 140 125 140 140 
			 Routine occupations 45 25 60 30 75 40 85 50 85 70 
			 Never worked and long-term unemployed(3) 0 0 0 0 5 5 5 0 5 5 
			 Total known 860 310 1,100 595 1,130 695 1,085 760 1,150 755 
			 Missing(4) 490 1,150 285 875 405 735 385 765 355 710 
			 (1) The table does not include enrolments where the census district of the student cannot be established due to missing or home postcodes. (2) This field collects the socio-economic classification of students participating in HE if 21 or over at the start of their course or parental classification if under 21. (3) Information is not comprehensively collected on the Never worked and long-term unemployed category for students. Students who fit this group are usually classed as having missing information. (4) Covers students whose socio-economic classification was missing or not classified: not classified includes occupations which were inadequately described, not classifiable or unstated..  Note: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded up or down to the nearest five, so components may not sum to totals.  Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA)

Students: Housing

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many students lived at home while studying in the most recent year for which figures were available.

Ian Lucas: The latest available information from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) shows that, in the academic year 2007-08, 267,965 UK domiciled full-time students enrolled at UK Higher Education Institutions lived at a parental or guardian home while studying.
	In total there were 1,201,975 UK domiciled full-time students enrolled at UK Higher Education Institutions in 2007-08. Therefore, 22 per cent. of full-time students lived at a parental or guardian home while studying.
	Figures for the 2008-09 academic year will be available in January 2010.

Students: Loans

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many career development loans were taken out for study  (a) in each subject area and  (b) at each level of education in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Kevin Brennan: Regular management information collected by the Learning and Skills Council on learners taking out career development loans is based on information provided by the high street banks that offer the loans. This classifies loan applications by courses linked to specific sectors, but not by specific subject areas or levels. Data classifying loan applications by subject area and level are available periodically through snapshot evaluation activity. Currently available evaluation does not cover the last three years.

Telephones

Colin Breed: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department has taken to combat the practice of moving a telephone subscriber's account from one service provider to another without the subscriber's authorisation; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: Responsibility for mis-selling lies with the Office of Communications (Ofcom) which is committed to preventing problems related to mis-selling and slamming (where a telephone service is switched to another provider without the customer's knowledge or consent), and has put various safeguards in place to protect consumers from such risks.
	In May 2005 Ofcom introduced new rules to combat slamming, which require all providers of fixed-line telecommunications services to residential consumers and small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) to establish, and comply with, a sales and marketing code of practice consistent with Ofcom guidelines. Compliance with the codes is enforceable by Ofcom under the Communications Act 2003 and they can require telecoms providers to remedy the consequences of any breach and can ultimately levy a financial penalty (up to 10 per cent. of relevant turnover) if they do not do so.
	In June 2006 Ofcom imposed the maximum financial penalty of 10 per cent. of relevant turnover on Just Telecomms UK Ltd (trading as Lo-Rate Telecom). This decision reflected the serious nature of the contravention. In addition to imposing a financial penalty, Ofcom is also requiring this company to:
	pay refunds to affected customers where appropriate;
	provide weekly reports to Ofcom on customer contact and refunds paid; and
	fully co-operate with, and comply with the adjudications of, the Telecommunications Ombudsman scheme (Otelo).
	Ofcom also monitors complaints received through its Advisory Team concerning instances of slamming and they will take action against providers who persistently act contrary to the guidelines.
	There are a number of safeguards built into the switching process. Customers must be sent a 'notification of transfer' letter informing them that the switch is happening. There is a 10 day switchover period during which time the customer is able to stop the order going ahead. Typically the customer will receive two letters during the switchover period-one from both their losing and gaining telephone companies.
	Ofcom is currently consulting on proposals to strengthen the existing safeguards in this area in order to ensure better protection for consumers and to enable it to take more effective action against providers that break the rules. The consultation closed at the end of May and Ofcom is now reviewing the responses, and expects to publish a statement later in the year.

Train to Gain Programme: Expenditure

John Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department has spent under the Train to Gain scheme in each year of its operation in each sector of the economy as classified by Sector Skills Council.

Kevin Brennan: holding answer 3 July 2009
	Train to Gain is a service for employers which puts buying power and information in their hands, giving them better access to a wider range of opportunities for improving the skills of their employees and the productivity of their business. Evaluations show that a wide spread of industry sectors are accessing the service.
	The expenditure for Train to Gain is an operational matter for the national Learning and Skills Council (LSC). They do not generally break down information on Train to Gain spend by Sector Skills Council (SSC). However, they are able to provide a breakdown of learner starts by sector and actual costs where possible. I have asked Geoff Russell, the LSC's chief executive, to write to the hon. Member with the relevant information. A copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.

Training: Disabled

Mike Hancock: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of the budget of the Learning and Skills Council for 2009-10 will be used in the training of people with a learning disability.

Kevin Brennan: As announced in the LSC grant letter, Government investment strategy and LSC statement of priorities (published 18 November 2008), investment in participation for learners aged 16 and over is planned to increase to over £10 billion in 2009-10.
	As set out in the same publication, the LSC are committed to continuing development of the provision and support available to learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. This will help us realise the vision set out in the learning for living and work strategy that people with learning difficulties and/or disabilities have access to, and experience of, post-16 learning that is equal to that experienced by their peers without learning difficulties and/or disabilities.
	When accessing mainstream LSC-funded further education courses, learners have the option to self-declare as having a learning difficulty and/or disability. It is therefore possible to provide historical, but not projected, spend.
	Total spend on self-declared learners was £874 million in 2006-07, and £923 million in 2007-08. This relates to funding for the programme costs of provision delivered through further education colleges. It does not include funding for provision delivered in the workplace, as data are not reported in this way.
	In addition, there is a separate budget for specialist LDD provision. This funds learners with LDD learning in independent, specialist providers. For 2009-10, the budget for this provision will be £236 million.

Training: Trade Unions

John Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what skills courses funded by his Department are provided by trade unions.

Patrick McFadden: Trade unions have not provided any skills courses funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Unemployment

David Willetts: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many and what percentage of people aged 16 to 24 were not in education, employment or training in each  (a) region and  (b) local authority area in the first quarter of (i) 2001 and (ii) 2009.

Kevin Brennan: holding answer 14 July 2009
	Table 1 shows the number and percentage of people aged(1) 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training by region. These estimates are from the Quarter 1 Labour Force Survey (LFS).
	Table 2 shows the number and percentage of people aged(1) 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training by Local Education Authority (LEA). The estimates for 2008 are from the Annual Population Survey (APS) which covers the period January to December, and the estimates for 2001 are from the Annual Local Area Labour Force Survey (ALALFS), the predecessor to the APS, which covers the period March 2001 to February 2002. Due to the small populations of local authorities, the LFS does not have large enough sample sizes to produce reliable estimates for geographies such as LEAs. Therefore we have used the latest APS (2008) which has a larger sample size, and have provided estimates for LEAs as estimates are too unreliable for smaller geographies. Please note that even for regions, sample sizes can be small and these estimates are subject to sampling variability. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest thousand, and typical confidence intervals for these percentages are between 2 and 3 percentage points for regional estimates, and between 3 and 9 percentage points for local authority estimates.
	
		
			  Table 1: People aged¹ 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training by region 
			   Q1 2001  Q1 2009 
			   NEET (number)  Percentage  NEET (number)  Percentage 
			 England 671,000 13 935,000 16 
			 North East 56,000 20 57,000 18 
			 North West 113,000 16 156,000 18 
			 Yorks and Humber 80,000 15 107,000 16 
			 East Midlands 57,000 13 69,000 13 
			 West Midlands 81,000 15 126,000 20 
			 East of England 61,000 12 83,000 14 
			 London 101,000 12 127,000 14 
			 South East 76,000 10 130,000 14 
			 South West 45,000 10 78,000 14 
			 (1) Age used is the respondent's academic age, which is their age at the preceding 31 August.  Base: 16 to 24 year olds, England  Source: Quarter 1 Labour Force Survey 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: People aged¹ 16 to 24 not in education, employment or training by local education authority 
			   Number  Percentage 
			   2001( 2)  2008  2001²  2008 
			 England 704,000 857,000 14 14 
			 Barking and Dagenham 5,000 4,000 21 20 
			 Barnet 3,000 7,000 9 19 
			 Barnsley 5,000 5,000 21 19 
			 Bath and North East Somerset 2,000 2,000 7 9 
			 Bedfordshire 4,000 4,000 12 8 
			 Bexley 3,000 3,000 13 14 
			 Birmingham 25,000 29,000 22 20 
			 Blackburn with Darwen 4,000 2,000 20 16 
			 Blackpool 3,000 2,000 16 12 
			 Bolton 4,000 4,000 12 12 
			 Bournemouth 2,000 3,000 9 14 
			 Bracknell Forest 2,000 2,000 14 13 
			 Bradford 13,000 9,000 23 14 
			 Brent 5,000 4,000 11 14 
			 Brighton and Hove 3,000 4,000 9 12 
			 Bristol 4,000 9,000 8 14 
			 Bromley 3,000 5,000 13 16 
			 Buckinghamshire 4,000 5,000 8 11 
			 Bury 3,000 3,000 15 14 
			 Calderdale 3,000 4,000 18 18 
			 Cambridgeshire 8,000 8,000 14 11 
			 Camden 3,000 3,000 15 10 
			 Cheshire 10,000 9,000 15 13 
			 Cornwall 6,000 5,000 13 10 
			 Coventry 4,000 9,000 10 19 
			 Croydon 5,000 6,000 14 16 
			 Cumbria 6,000 2,000 12 5 
			 Darlington 2,000 1,000 16 12 
			 Derby 4,000 4,000 15 13 
			 Derbyshire 11,000 10,000 15 14 
			 Devon 6,000 5,000 12 6 
			 Doncaster 6,000 8,000 19 22 
			 Dorset 4,000 3,000 11 8 
			 Dudley 7,000 8,000 18 19 
			 Durham 8,000 11,000 17 17 
			 Ealing 5,000 5,000 15 13 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 3,000 5,000 11 14 
			 East Sussex 4,000 8,000 10 17 
			 Enfield 3,000 3,000 11 12 
			 Essex 13,000 21,000 11 14 
			 Gateshead 3,000 4,000 16 21 
			 Gloucestershire 6,000 6,000 10 10 
			 Greenwich 4,000 4,000 15 16 
			 Hackney 8,000 5,000 29 20 
			 Halton 4,000 3,000 27 23 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 2,000 2,000 10 12 
			 Hampshire 9,000 16,000 8 11 
			 Haringey 6,000 6,000 19 20 
			 Harrow 2,000 3,000 9 13 
			 Hartlepool 3,000 3,000 26 27 
			 Havering 3,000 2,000 12 7 
			 Herefordshire 1,000 2,000 8 12 
			 Hertfordshire 9,000 14,000 9 13 
			 Hillingdon 3,000 4,000 11 15 
			 Hounslow 3,000 6,000 10 22 
			 Isle of Wight 2,000 2,000 17 18 
			 Islington 5,000 3,000 20 14 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 2,000 3,000 13 16 
			 Kent 17,000 25,000 14 17 
			 Kingston upon Hull 8,000 8,000 23 18 
			 Kingston upon Thames 1,000 2,000 7 11 
			 Kirklees 7,000 8,000 15 19 
			 Knowsley 4,000 5,000 25 20 
			 Lambeth 3,000 4,000 8 12 
			 Lancashire 14,000 21,000 13 14 
			 Leeds 9,000 20,000 10 15 
			 Leicester 5,000 9,000 13 18 
			 Leicestershire 5,000 9,000 8 14 
			 Lewisham 5,000 5,000 16 19 
			 Lincolnshire 7,000 10,000 12 13 
			 Liverpool 9,000 10,000 17 15 
			 Luton 4,000 4,000 14 16 
			 Manchester 11,000 13,000 17 16 
			 Medway 4,000 5,000 14 18 
			 Merton 1,000 3,000 7 15 
			 Middlesbrough 3,000 5,000 21 24 
			 Milton Keynes 2,000 2,000 8 9 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 5,000 6,000 16 10 
			 Newham 9,000 4,000 22 12 
			 Norfolk 9,000 15,000 13 17 
			 North East Lincolnshire 4,000 4,000 21 21 
			 North Lincolnshire 2,000 2,000 15 15 
			 North Somerset 2,000 2,000 10 7 
			 North Tyneside 5,000 4,000 22 20 
			 North Yorkshire 4,000 7,000 8 12 
			 Northamptonshire 7,000 12,000 11 14 
			 Northumberland 5,000 4,000 17 11 
			 Nottingham 6,000 7,000 16 12 
			 Nottinghamshire 10,000 12,000 14 14 
			 Oldham 5,000 7,000 21 25 
			 Oxfordshire 6,000 6,000 10 8 
			 Peterborough 3,000 4,000 16 20 
			 Plymouth 5,000 3,000 19 8 
			 Poole 2,000 2,000 12 12 
			 Portsmouth 3,000 3,000 10 8 
			 Reading 3,000 2,000 13 11 
			 Redbridge 5,000 4,000 18 14 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 4,000 4,000 25 27 
			 Richmond upon Thames 1,000 2,000 10 12 
			 Rochdale 4,000 3,000 18 14 
			 Rotherham 5,000 7,000 18 24 
			 Rutland 1,000 * 14 9 
			 Salford 7,000 6,000 22 22 
			 Sandwell 5,000 9,000 17 26 
			 Sefton 4,000 7,000 14 19 
			 Sheffield 8,000 13,000 14 16 
			 Shropshire 3,000 3,000 11 10 
			 Slough 3,000 2,000 12 14 
			 Solihull 3,000 4,000 11 18 
			 Somerset 3,000 7,000 6 13 
			 South Gloucestershire 1,000 2,000 6 7 
			 South Tyneside 4,000 3,000 20 16 
			 Southampton 3,000 4,000 9 10 
			 Southend on Sea 3,000 3,000 19 20 
			 Southwark 5,000 6,000 19 16 
			 St Helens 2,000 4,000 12 21 
			 Staffordshire 6,000 11,000 8 11 
			 Stockport 2,000 4,000 10 13 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 2,000 4,000 13 18 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 5,000 5,000 15 19 
			 Suffolk 10,000 11,000 16 16 
			 Sunderland 7,000 6,000 21 15 
			 Surrey 9,000 8,000 9 8 
			 Sutton 2,000 1,000 8 8 
			 Swindon 2,000 3,000 9 16 
			 Tameside 3,000 6,000 14 23 
			 Telford and Wrekin 2,000 3,000 14 15 
			 Thurrock 2,000 3,000 12 17 
			 Torbay 2,000 2,000 17 12 
			 Tower Hamlets 9,000 7,000 22 22 
			 Trafford 3,000 3,000 11 13 
			 Wakefield 5,000 7,000 15 16 
			 Walsall 5,000 5,000 17 17 
			 Waltham Forest 5,000 6,000 18 18 
			 Wandsworth 4,000 3,000 13 12 
			 Warrington 3,000 3,000 17 14 
			 Warwickshire 5,000 6,000 11 13 
			 West Berkshire 1,000 1,000 7 9 
			 West Sussex 4,000 8,000 6 11 
			 Westminster 4,000 5,000 13 15 
			 Wigan 6,000 5,000 18 13 
			 Wiltshire 2,000 7,000 4 15 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 1,000 1,000 11 10 
			 Wirral 4,000 6,000 13 20 
			 Wokingham 2,000 2,000 11 11 
			 Wolverhampton 6,000 9,000 20 29 
			 Worcestershire 4,000 5,000 10 8 
			 York 2,000 1,000 9 4 
			 (1) Age used is the respondent's academic age, which is their age at the preceding 31 August. (2) 2001 data is from the Annual Local Area Labour Force Survey, the predecessor to the APS. Base:  16 to 24 year olds, England  Source: 2001 Annual Local Area Labour Force Survey and 2008 Annual Population Survey. * Sample size too small so number suppressed.

Union Modernisation Fund

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  with reference to the Answer to the hon. Member for Chichester (Mr. Tyrie) of 19 February 2008,  Official Report, column 658W, on the Union Modernisation Fund: audit, which accountancy firms have undertaken audits on union modernisation fund profits since the date of that Answer;
	(2)  if he will place in the Library a copy of each evaluation report of the Union Modernisation Fund produced by his Department in conjunction with Leeds University Business School;
	(3)  for what reason no minutes are kept of the Union Modernisation Fund Supervisory Board meetings;
	(4)  what declaration of past and present union activity and membership each current member of the Union Modernisation Fund Supervisory Board has made;
	(5)  what related party transactions have been declared by each of the Union Modernisation Fund Supervisory Board members;
	(6)  if he will place in the Library a copy of the protocol adopted by the Union Modernisation Fund Supervisory Board on conflicts of interest.

Patrick McFadden: I shall take the answers together and in order.
	Since my response to the hon. Member for Chichester on 19 February 2008,  Official Report, column 658W, the additional companies listed have undertaken reports to confirm claims and expenditure from the Union Modernisation Fund.
	Naylor Wintersgill
	Knox Cropper
	H K Jenkins FCCA
	BDO Stoy Hayward LLP
	Nabarro
	Brooks Green
	UHY Hacker Young
	RSM Bentley Jennison
	The independent accountants' reports have confirmed that none of the project costs claimed have been calculated to include any profit.
	A copy of the final evaluation report of the first round of the Union Modernisation Fund produced by my Department in conjunction with Leeds University Business School will be published shortly and placed in the Libraries of both Houses. Copies of the two interim evaluations of the first round are available on the Department's website, and we will ensure that they are available from the Libraries.
	An action record of decisions is taken at Supervisory Board meetings in line with the Board's terms of reference and these are communicated to Ministers by the Board's secretariat and to the applicants of all bids.
	Members of the Union Modernisation Fund Supervisory Board are selected by open competition in accordance with the Commissioner for Public Appointments' Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies, with support from the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. As part of that appointment process, applicants must declare relevant experience and give details of potential conflicts of interest. All appointment letters set out the Nolan Principles of Public Life, which are the foundations of the public appointments process and provide guidance on the standards expected of public appointees. All members declare their political activities at the time of application to the Board. Board members are reminded of the need to observe the rules on conflict of interest when assessing bids.

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the  (a) minimum and  (b) maximum proportion of the UK Atomic Energy Authority Ltd which will remain under Government control following the completion of a sale of a majority stake.

Rosie Winterton: There is no 'minimum or maximum' estimation of the proportion of the share capital of UKAEA Ltd. which will remain under Government control following a sale process. Up to 100 per cent. of UKAEA Ltd.'s share capital has been offered for sale, but bidders have been permitted to bid for a lower proportion if they believed that this would result in a more attractive proposition for HMG.

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations  (a) the Secretary of State and  (b) his predecessors have received from the management of the UK Atomic Energy Authority Ltd in favour of a sale of all or part of the business since 1997; on what dates such representations were received; and what factors were taken into account in determining the response to such representations.

Rosie Winterton: The process for the sale of the business has been approved by the UK Atomic Energy Authority's Board in consultation with its financial adviser and UKAEA Ltd.'s management. The recommendation has been approved by the Secretary of State after taking into account key areas of the board's consideration.

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the likely effect on competition in nuclear site decommissioning of the sale of a stake in the UK Atomic Energy Authority Ltd.

Rosie Winterton: The introduction of private capital is expected to strengthen UKAEA Ltd. financially as well as permitting it to recruit and retain appropriate skills and expertise. This should allow it to compete more effectively within the nuclear site decommissioning market. This, in turn, is expected to benefit the competitive dynamics of the UK nuclear decommissioning market as a whole.

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which companies have registered an interest in purchasing a stake in the UK Atomic Energy Authority Ltd.

Rosie Winterton: This information is commercially sensitive during a live sale process.

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what account has been taken of the merits of maintaining an international centre of nuclear expertise in the UK in deciding on the future of UKAEA Ltd.

Rosie Winterton: The skills and nuclear expertise included within UKAEA Ltd. will be enhanced by private sector ownership. UKAEA Ltd. is one of several service providers of nuclear decommissioning services to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. The NDA contracts with a broad rangeof UK and international businesses to manage decommissioning more effectively at its various sites. Contracts are awarded by the NDA by way of a competitive process.

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the reasons are for his decision to sell a majority stake in UKAEA Ltd; and what criteria he will apply to determine the suitability of potential purchasers.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 13 July 2009
	The decision to sell UKAEA has been motivated by the objective of supporting the continuity of UKAEA Ltd's operations. A sale is expected to provide UKAEA Ltd. with access to the resources that it requires to participate effectively in the forthcoming Nuclear Decommissioning Authority competitions. The sale process has been opened to all categories of bidder who, inter alia, will need to satisfy the Secretary of State and the NDA with regard to their suitability as an experienced and responsible future owner of the business.

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the capital value of the assets of UKAEA Ltd was in each of the last five years.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 13 July 2009
	UKAEA Ltd. was dormant until 1 April 2008. Audited statutory figures are not yet available for 2008-09.

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what net financial contributions have been made by UKAEA Ltd to  (a) the UK Atomic Authority and  (b) the Exchequer in each year since 1997; and what the Government's most recent estimate of future such contributions in the next three years was prior to the decision to sell a majority stake in UKAEA Ltd.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 13 July 2009
	UKAEA Ltd. was dormant until 1 April 2008 hence there were no financial contributions from UKAEA Ltd to either the UK Atomic Authority or the Exchequer.
	Although UKAEA Ltd. is forecast to be profitable for the three-year period following the decision to sell, distributions are a matter for the board of the UK Atomic Energy Authority to propose based on their assessment of the overall funding requirements for the authority as a whole.

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

Charles Hendry: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what information the companies which have registered an interest in purchasing a stake in UKAEA Ltd have communicated to his Department in respect of their expertise in nuclear technology.

Rosie Winterton: All final round bidders for UKAEA Ltd. have been asked to provide a detailed offer. As part of this, they will need to respond to a data request to fully clarify their operating credentials. The precise nature of the questions contained in the data request and the information that is ultimately received from interested parties is commercially sensitive.

Vehicle Scrappage Scheme

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps have been taken to prevent the destruction of classic cars under the vehicle scrappage scheme.

Ian Lucas: It is for the owners of a vehicle to decide what they wish to do with their own property.

Vehicle Scrappage Scheme

David Taylor: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many vehicles of each  (a) age and  (b) make had been scrapped under his Department's scrappage scheme by the latest date for which figures are available.

Ian Lucas: Government have approved or made payments for 29,542 completed transactions (a requirement of which is that a Certificate of Destruction on the old car has been obtained before the claim is made) and further claims are in the pipeline. BIS does not directly collect data on the age of vehicles scrapped, although they must have been registered in the UK before 31 August 1999. We will be publishing information on the makes of vehicles scrapped in due course.

Vocational Training

John Hayes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which 10 vocational training courses funded by his Department had the lowest participant job entry rate after completion in the last 12 months.

Kevin Brennan: Information on the job entry rate for vocational courses is not available.
	Our vocational qualification reforms are creating a more flexible qualifications and skills system whereby qualifications are closely aligned to the real needs of employers and employers have a real say in what qualifications are needed across occupational areas. Sector skills councils (SSCs) have a key role in developing vocational qualifications based on their sector's needs and will only approve qualifications that fit their skills requirements and, in future, the skills funding agency will only fund those qualifications which SSCs advise them to. Allowing and encouraging employers to get their training accredited onto the new qualifications and credit framework also ensures demand-led qualifications based on employers needs.
	Information on the number of awards of national vocational qualifications/Scottish vocational qualifications and vocationally related qualification (VRQs) is published in a statistical first release, including information on the subjects with the largest volume of awards. Tables 1 and 2 as follow provide information on the number of NVQ/SVQ and VRQ awards by sector subject area.
	
		
			  Table 1: NVQ/SVQ awards by sector subject area, 2007-08 , coverage UK 
			  Sector subject area  Total awards (000s) 
			 Total UK awards 773.2 
			 Health, public services and care 179.2 
			 Science and mathematics (1)( )- 
			 Agriculture, horticulture and animal care 15.3 
			 Engineering and manufacturing technologies 104.8 
			 Construction, planning and the built environment 106.5 
			 Information and communication technology 28.7 
			 Retail and commercial enterprise 164.0 
			 Leisure, travel and tourism 25.0 
			 Arts, media and publishing 1.6 
			 Languages, literature and culture 2.2 
			 Education and training 16.0 
			 Preparation for life and work 1.2 
			 Business, administration and law 128.5 
			 (1 )Less than 1,000  Note: Numbers may not add up to total due to rounding.  Source: NISVQ 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: VRQ Awards (as reported by participating awarding bodies) by sector subject area, 2007-08, coverage: UK 
			   All VRQ Awards (000s) 
			  Sector subject area  Total awards 
			 Total UK Awards 1,674.2 
			 Health, public services and care 298.7 
			 Science and mathematics 26.2 
			 Agriculture, horticulture and animal care 27.3 
			 Engineering and manufacturing technologies 188.1 
			 Construction, planning and the built environment 127.6 
			 Information and communication technology 292.0 
			 Retail and commercial enterprise 127.7 
			 Leisure, travel and tourism 225.2 
			 Arts, media and publishing 119.4 
			 History, philosophy and theology (1)- 
			 Social Sciences (1)- 
			 Languages, literature and culture 18.8 
			 Education and training 32.4 
			 Preparation for life and work 42.9 
			 Business, administration and law 147.7 
		
	
	
		
			   Full VRQ awards (000s) 
			  Sector subject area  Total awards 
			 Total UK awards 390.7 
			 Health, public services and care 58.4 
			 Science and mathematics 10.2 
			 Agriculture, horticulture and animal care 12.0 
			 Engineering and manufacturing technologies 53.5 
			 Construction, planning and the built environment 85.6 
			 Information and communication technology 30.6 
			 Retail and commercial enterprise 8.4 
			 Leisure, travel and tourism 43.2 
			 Arts, media and publishing 62.5 
			 Preparation for life and work 1.3 
			 Business, administration and law 25.1 
			 (1) Less than 1,000  Notes:  1. Numbers may not add up to total due to rounding.  2. Numbers of awards are only for those awarding bodies submitting VRQ data to NISVQ.  Source: NISVQ

Wind Power

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will estimate the  (a) number of British companies which build wind turbines and  (b) size of the workforce of each such company.

David Kidney: I have been asked to reply.
	The recent Innovas (2009) report for BIS, Low Carbon and Environmental Goods and Services: an industry analysis, estimated the number of companies, both British and foreign-owned, in the UK wind sector in the financial year 2007-08 at around 5,800. The definition of this sector includes the manufacture of wind turbines, but also whole wind farm systems and their associated supply chains.
	The same report estimates UK wind sector employment in 2007-08 at around 87,000. This would imply an average of 15 workers per company across the whole wind sector.
	Separate estimates of the number of and employment in British-owned companies building wind turbines are not available.

Working Hours

John Redwood: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether there are restrictions on the number of hours a person who is  (a) self-employed and  (b) a chief executive officer of a major (i) public body and (ii) private corporation may work.

Patrick McFadden: The Working Time Regulations 1998, which govern the maximum number of hours a person may work, apply to individuals who are considered to be workers as defined in the regulations. The self employed, who are in business on their own account, are not usually regarded as workers as they are in effect their own boss. There are specific exemptions from certain provisions in the regulations for managing executives or other persons with autonomous decision-taking powers.
	An individual's contract with a public or private corporation will determine if that person is covered by the regulations.

Working Hours: Members

John Redwood: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether EU Working Time Directive restrictions on working hours apply to hon. Members when  (a) acting as constituency Members and  (b) undertaking duties in the House.

Patrick McFadden: The regulations implementing the Working Time Directive in the UK apply to workers. A worker is someone who works under a contract of employment or a contract to perform personally any work or services for another party whose status is not that of a client or customer. Holders of political and elected office are not regarded as workers and are therefore not covered by the regulations.

Working Hours: Members

John Redwood: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether there is a restriction on the number of hours an hon. Member may work in their capacity as  (a) a hon. Member and  (b) a Minister.

Patrick McFadden: The Working Time Regulations 1998, which govern the maximum number of hours a person may work, apply to individuals who are considered to be workers as defined in the regulations.
	A worker is someone who works under a contract of employment or a contract to perform personally any work or services for another party whose status is not that of a client or customer. Holders of political and elected office are not regarded as workers and are therefore not covered by the regulations.

Working Hours: Ministers

John Redwood: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether EU Working Time Directive restrictions on working hours apply to Ministers in the performance of their ministerial duties.

Patrick McFadden: The regulations implementing the Working Time Directive in the UK apply to workers. A worker is someone who works under a contract of employment or a contract to perform personally any work or services for another party whose status is not that of a client or customer. Holders of political and elected office are not regarded as workers and are therefore not covered by the regulations.

WorldSkills Calgary 2009

David Evennett: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many officials his Department plans to send to WorldSkills Calgary 2009.

Kevin Brennan: The Department will be sending one official to the WorldSkills Calgary 2009 event.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to answer question 280003, tabled on 10 June 2009, on the Automotive Assistance Programme.

Ian Lucas: I replied to the hon. Member on 23 June 2009,  Official Report, column 870W.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the reasons are for the time taken to answer question 245130, tabled on 15 December 2008, on replies to correspondence.

Kevin Brennan: holding answer 16 July 2009
	I am responding to the hon. Member today.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Edward Timpson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills when he plans to provide a substantive answer to question 284440, on national skills academies, tabled on 1 July 2009.

Kevin Brennan: holding answer 16 July 2009
	 I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 13 July 2009,  Official Report, column 198W.

Yes Loans

John Penrose: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 17 June 2009,  Official Report, column 422W, on Yes Loans, when he expects a decision to be made on the renewal of the consumer credit licence for Yes Loans.

Kevin Brennan: The Office of Fair Trading carried out a detailed investigation into Yes Loans and its business practices and on 13 July 2009 it imposed multiple requirements on the company to change its behaviour and to cease certain business practices. Any single failure to comply with these requirements, now or in the future, can result in a fine of up to £50,000 per occasion.
	Following the OFT's requirements, which were imposed upon the company, a renewed credit licence will be issued in due course. The exact timing for reissuing Yes Loans licence is a matter for the OFT.